Fisherwomen on the Coast near Boulogne 1830

William Collins painted 'Fisherwomen on the Coast near Boulogne' sometime in the first half of the 19th century. It depicts women at work on the French coast. Paintings of working-class people became more common in Britain during this period. Collins, like many of his contemporaries, was interested in capturing scenes of everyday life. But what does it mean to turn working people into images for display? Consider the rise of industrialization at this time and the changing roles of women in society. How does the painting reinforce or challenge the social structures of its time? Is it romanticizing their labor? Is it drawing attention to social inequalities? To understand the painting better, we might research the economic conditions of fishing communities in France during the 1800s, and consider the emerging artistic institutions that made paintings like this popular. Only then can we interpret the social role of such an artwork with greater understanding.