Vier oude vrouwen Possibly 1895 - 1898

Pierre-Georges Jeanniot created this print called "Vier oude vrouwen" - "Four Old Women" - using etching. Jeanniot was a French painter, illustrator and designer who came of age during the Belle Epoque. As such, this work sits within a period of dramatic social and political change. The artist has chosen a subject from the margins of Parisian society. The lines map every contour of the women's faces, offering us an unsentimental look at aging, challenging idealized portrayals of women common at the time. Each woman is wrapped in her own thoughts and textures of clothing, suggesting a shared existence marked by hardship. The print invites reflection on the representation of elderly women in art and society. It subtly confronts our own assumptions and biases about aging and visibility, and how these women navigate a world that often overlooks them.