Artwork
One of eighteen paintings of trades and domestic servants.
One of eighteen paintings of trades and domestic servants. is a paint painting by the Impressionist artist Unknown. It dates from 1870 and is held in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum. The work is one of a series of eighteen paintings that depict various trades and domestic servants.
About this work
Overview
The work is one of a series of eighteen paintings that depict various trades and domestic servants. Executed in oil on canvas, it presents a solitary figure—a barefoot man in loose, light‑coloured attire, a white hat, and a belt—standing on a plain ground. He holds a broom in his right hand while his left hand rests on his hip, embodying a straightforward representation of everyday labour.
Subject & Meaning
The central figure is a domestic servant, identified by his simple clothing and the broom, a common tool of household maintenance. By portraying him barefoot and unclothed in any status symbols, the artist emphasizes the humility and routine nature of the occupation, offering a glimpse into the social hierarchy of the period.
Technique & Style
The painting employs a muted palette with soft, flat colour areas, avoiding dramatic chiaroscuro. Small red motifs on the trousers provide a subtle accent. The overall composition is plain and unembellished, reflecting a genre‑painting approach that favours direct observation over idealisation, characteristic of the series’ aim to document daily work life.
History & Provenance
Created as part of an eighteenth‑painting series commissioned to record various occupations, the piece has remained in public collections. It is currently held by the Victoria and Albert Museum, where it contributes to the institution’s broader holdings of social and domestic genre works from the same era.
Artist & collection
Domestic Scene
Giacomo and Cardinal Marco, investing Andrea, Abbot of San Zeno, with his Benefice
The Nymph of Fontainebleau
Portrait of a Woman
Madonna and Child with Saints in the Enclosed Garden
Venus and Minerva
Family Group of Four on Sofa
Wall painting from Room H of the Villa of P. Fannius Synistor at Boscoreale
