Landscape near Vichy and the Auvergne (i); Landscape in Auvergne (ii)

Formerly part of the same sketchbook, these two landscape drawings date to the period spent by Millet and his wife in the Allier and Auvergne regions, between 1866 and 1867, as evident from by the reference to Vichy on one of them. In Millet's career, the sojourn in Auvergne marked a fundamental shift towards painting and drawing pure landscapes, not seen as a mere setting for his peasant figures. Usually characterized by a subtle use of color, some of the drawings executed in the areas around Vichy and Cusset were translated into more finished pastel drawings, which Millet drew after he got back to Barbizon.