Work of Youth, illustrations for Césette, by Pouvillon (Oeuvre de jeunesse pour illustration de "Cézette")

Bourdelle produced about 100 drawings to be used as illustrations for Césette. The Story of a Peasant Girl, by Émile Pouvillon. Some of the most detailed ones (such as this one) were conceived in a very specific way: myriad methodical pen strokes create a uniformly grey background, due to the application of the same diluted ink. A metaphor for the hard work patiently repeated by the farmer, the artist's meticulous gesture has patiently covered the entire surface, the entire field. By avoiding contrasts, he creates the harmony of the landscape: a unity where each element gives meaning to the whole. The style is that of an etching, and pays obvious homage to the artist Millet, whom Bourdelle greatly admired. Césette's hidden face, her posture bent towards the earth, and her clothes, all evoke Millet's Gleaners.

Stéphane Ferrand