Realism · c. 1859

Death and the Woodcutter

Death and the Woodcutter (c. 1859) by Jean-François Millet. Its palette is led by charcoal (#262625, 66%) and taupe (#514941, 23%), with accents of light reddish tan. Overall the canvas is dark, muted and warm.

Color reading

Black and gray cover about three-quarters of the canvas. Even its most colorful tone, amber brown #876F5C, stays close to gray.

Palette

#262625 MG 222 charcoal 65.8% of canvas
#514941 MG 176 taupe 23.1% of canvas
#876f5c MG 166 amber brown 5.5% of canvas
#ae9b8f MG 151 light reddish tan 3.1% of canvas
#e5d5c4 MG 201 parchment 2.4% of canvas

Color families

Black 48%, Gray 26%, Brown 24%, White 1%, Orange 0%

Measurements

Lightness: 0.34
Contrast: 0.45
Vividness: 0.011
Warmth: +1.00
Complexity: 88 cells
Hue range: 0.27
Focus: 0.18

Composition

57% of the visual weight is in the left half, 62% in the upper half. Symmetry 0.38 (how closely its shapes and edges mirror each other). 36% of the canvas is calm space. Half of the detail sits in 29% of the canvas. Measured from the image, not a rule the painter followed.

Details

Date: c. 1859
Medium: Oil on canvas
Size: 77.5 × 98.5 cm
Genre: allegory
Made in: France
Collection: Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek, Copenhagen

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More by Jean-François Millet

The Gleaners, 1857
The Angelus, 1858