The artwork, “Winter Fuel,” created by John Everett Millais in 1873, is an oil painting on canvas that belongs to the Realism movement. The piece measures 149.5 by 194.5 cm and is classified as a genre painting.
In “Winter Fuel,” the painting depicts a pastoral scene featuring a young girl, clad in rustic attire with a red headscarf, sitting on a cart laden with cut logs. The foreground is dominated by the cart’s wooden wheels and the logs, which are intricately detailed with rough textures. At the girl’s feet lies a small black dog, looking upwards. The background showcases a scenic landscape with a large, tree-covered hill set against a serene, overcast sky. Sparse trees, some seemingly stripped of their leaves, are dispersed across the field, hinting at the onset of winter. The entire scene embodies the essence of rural life and the preparation for the colder season, capturing a moment of quiet labor and contemplation amid nature’s gradual transition.
