Laundresses on the Banks of the Touques 1887

Eugène Boudin created Laundresses on the Banks of the Touques with oil paint on canvas. Boudin uses traditional materials, such as brushes, palettes and paint, and processes to depict women doing laundry. The rough texture of the canvas and the loose brushstrokes emphasize the laborious aspect of the women's work. The artist does not depict individual facial expressions, rather generalized figures engaged in the physical work of washing clothes in the river. The women are shown huddled together, close to the water and bent over their work, using a communal practice tied to social issues of labor. The painting style reflects the amount of work involved in the everyday tasks of the laundresses, their movements mirroring the application of paint on the canvas. This emphasizes the skill and effort involved not only in the art itself, but also in the essential work that these women were performing. Paying attention to materials, making, and social context is crucial for understanding the full meaning of an artwork like this, and for challenging conventional distinctions between fine art and craft.