Maternité 1913

Constant Permeke, a Belgian expressionist, made this painting, entitled ‘Maternité,’ using a muted palette of earth tones and blues. The painting depicts a mother and child, their faces rendered with a raw, almost sculptural quality. Permeke was part of a generation of artists who sought to capture the essence of rural life, in a time of great social change and upheaval in Europe. He uses simplified forms and a rough texture in order to convey the dignity of working-class people. His art should be seen as a counterpoint to the academic styles and bourgeois subjects that dominated the art world in the 19th century. As art historians, we can examine Permeke’s paintings in the context of Belgian social history, studying the political movements and economic structures that shaped the lives of working-class families. This contextual approach allows us to understand the public role of art and the social conditions that shape artistic production.