Jules Bastien-Lepage - Le Petit Colporteur endormi

Humanity is a central theme of many of the works in the Van Cutsem collection. As a representative of a particular form of naturalism championed notably by Émile Zola, Bastien-Lepage had a major influence on the realist painting of his time. With his Colporteur Endormi (Sleeping Pedlar), he presents an image of childhood without judgement or idealisation, deliberately using details such as trousers and shoes with holes in them to evoke compassion for his character. The artist knew his model, a young boy called Lerolle who lived in Damvillers, the village of his birth.