Jean-Baptiste Camille Corot and Woman Reading a Book

'Woman reading a book (Virgils Muse)' (1845) by Jean-Baptiste Camille Corot;
Musée du Louvre, Paris

I know this painting by the French painter Jean-Baptiste Camille Corot, born on July 17, 1796, and died on February 22, 1875, from a calendar with paintings of women reading that hung in my hallway last year. This was one of the paintings that I liked very much. Corot was the leading painter of the Barbizon School and was vitally important to landscape painting. When you see his work, it is clear that he went through different phases. Some of his earlier landscapes seem quite 'modern', whereas his work after 1865 had an Impressionist touch. His figure painting was almost as important as his landscapes. I particulary like his paintings of women. Apparently Corot was extremely productive and there is a lot to choose from. He painted over 3,000 paintings and I chose this one!