The National Gallery in London is showcasing the first major exhibition of French artist Jean-François Millet's work in half a century, featuring his revolutionary paintings that depicted the dignity and struggles of rural peasantry during the 19th century. The exhibition, titled "Life on the Land," presents 15 paintings and six drawings that challenged the artistic conventions of his era by focusing on marginalized agricultural workers rather than aristocratic subjects.

Millet faced a unique artistic challenge in the middle years of the 19th century: how to authentically portray the scorned, marginalized, and overlooked members of society. His subjects were peasants who worked the land, including small plot owners and itinerant laborers such as sawyers who would dangerously and swiftly take down diseased trees, chopping them into pieces for local women to carry away on their backs, nearly doubled over under the immense weight. Despite being a hero to Vincent van Gogh for drawing attention to the nobility and heroism of the underdog, Millet himself has rarely been displayed publicly in London in recent years.

Born into relative prosperity on his family farm in the hilly, lush countryside surrounding the village of Gruchy in Normandy, Millet later traveled south to the flat plain of Barbizon, not far from Paris. The current exhibition, though relatively modest in size, creates an intimate atmosphere with walls painted in rich, deep blue that helps vivify the compact gathering of artworks. The works appear to draw in on themselves, enriching their singular presence and allowing viewers to focus on the intricate details of rural life.

Millet demonstrated particular interest in the postures of his figures, carefully depicting how they bend, lean, twist, turn, and heave while using whatever tools they had at hand. He understood that theirs was backbreaking work, endured over long hours under harsh conditions. Notably, he frequently portrayed peasants wearing shoes, usually clogs, in contrast to many painters of his time who depicted them barefoot, as if the earth beneath their feet was a soft carpet for skipping over. Millet recognized that nature included rocks, stones, and briars, understanding that sentimental Parisian idealists with no countryside experience would know nothing of such thorny realities.

One of the exhibition's most dramatic works, "Wood Sawyers" (1850-52), exemplifies hard, physical labor through its depiction of two sawyers engaged in the sweaty push and pull of chopping up a huge felled tree. The painting shows how they lean and bend into their task, bracing themselves, toiling against and fighting back against the enormous trunk. The men appear small when set against the heft, weight, and muscular presence of the mighty tree. The man with his back to viewers, his slightly bowed legs spread wide in gleaming emerald trousers, possesses an undeniable elegance typical of many of Millet's rural laborers, who often worked alone in fields.

The artist's mission included drawing attention to the dignity of agricultural workers, though his paintings often divided contemporary critics. Conservatives condemned him as a covert subversive and perhaps even a dangerous radical, while progressives applauded his decision to turn away from the gaudy glitter of kings, potentates, and dignitaries. Like the two sawyers in his painting, Millet continued painting steadily, refusing to be deflected from his artistic mission.

The exhibition features several other notable works, including "The Goose Girl at Gruchy" (1854-56), "A Shepherdess" (about 1856), "The Winnower" (about 1847-48), "A Man ploughing and Another sowing" (1849-52), "A Milkmaid" (about 1853), and "L'Angélus" (1857-59). These pieces collectively demonstrate Millet's commitment to portraying rural life with honesty and respect, showing the physical demands and quiet dignity of agricultural work.

"Millet: Life on the Land" continues at the National Gallery on Trafalgar Square through October 19, offering visitors a rare opportunity to experience the work of an artist whose revolutionary approach to subject matter influenced generations of painters, including van Gogh. The exhibition was curated by Sarah Herring and represents a significant cultural event for those interested in 19th-century French art and social commentary through visual arts.