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Camille Pissarro, Apple-Picking, 1886
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Camille Pissarro, Apple-Picking, 1886

Pizarro's Artistic Journey: The Challenge of Large Paintings

Struggles with Scale and Subject Matter

  • In 1881, Pizarro faced a significant decision to create two large paintings depicting rural life, despite his discomfort with larger works, preferring smaller formats to minimize risk.
  • By 1884, three years into the project, he was still grappling with one of these large pieces focused on apple picking and had hired models for this endeavor.
  • During this period, Pizarro met George S., a young artist working on "The Grand Shot," which is now recognized as a masterpiece in Western art history.
  • After critiquing and influencing George S.'s work, Pizarro also reworked his own painting of apple pickers; both artworks were displayed together at the final exhibition in 1886.
  • The depiction of apple pickers invites reflection on rural workers' lives compared to those in more labor-intensive jobs, suggesting an aspirational quality within their portrayal.
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Camille Pissarro (French, 1830--1903) Apple-Picking 1886 Oil on canvas Ohara Museum of Art, Kurashiki, Japan Pissarro began working on the monumental Apple-Picking in 1881 but did not consider the canvas finished until 1886, when he exhibited it at the final Impressionist exhibition. He spent years extensively reworking the painting's surface in the pointillist style of the Neo-Impressionists Georges Seurat and Paul Signac, who shared the older artist's artistic ambitions and political beliefs.