A Child with an Apple

A Child with an Apple from 1787 exemplifies Greuze's enduringly popular images of childhood innocence. Now in the National Gallery, London, the painting shows the artist's ability to invest simple subjects with emotional warmth that appealed to collectors across class boundaries during the twilight of the Ancien Régime. Characteristic of the artist's mature approach, the work displays theatrically posed figures, expressive faces registering emotion with unsubtle directness, a palette ranging from Rococo pastels in early works to colder, more sober tones after the Revolution.

The rosy-cheeked child is modeled with pearly flesh tones characteristic of Greuze, the apple serving as both a naturalistic detail and a symbolic reference to innocence.