The Woodcutters

This enigmatic painting shows people of various genders and ages in a forest, performing a range of activities. The spatial flatness, chalky colors, and strong outlines are typical of Pierre Puvis de Chavannes. The men cutting wood in the right foreground are much more fully modeled than the other figures. The difference in finish is probably because this work was a large-scale study for a never-completed mural. Its exact subject is unclear. The man descending a hill in the background carrying a lyre may be the mythological poet and musician Orpheus, potentially making this a Classical story about the civilizing effects of culture.

Raised in a wealthy family, Pierre Puvis de Chavannes received an eclectic artistic education from several leading contemporary artists, as well as periods of independent study. His great passion was decorative mural painting, which he revived virtually singlehandedly in nineteenth- century France.