Millet2022

10. The Departure for Work Le Depart

c. 1857–59 Black conte on paper

5 13 ⁄ 16 x 8 7 ⁄ 16 in. (14.8 x 21.4 cm) Stamped lower right: Lugt 1460

Merging secular and spiritual themes in a way that culminated with the masterful drawing Flight into Egypt in the collection of the Art Institute of Chicago, our drawing is one of a group of early studies of this subject that portrays a family of peasant farmers travelling, but suggests the biblical story of the flight of Joseph, Mary and the Christ child. Other examples in this series are in the collection of the Rijksmuseum Vincent Van Gogh and a pastel in the Frick Art and Historical Center, Pittsburgh.

The Flight Into Egypt , c. 1864, black and brown conte crayon, with pen and ink, over wash on paper; Art Institute of Chicago, 1996-608