Chiding

Léon-Emile Caille 1836 - 1907

Summary

A mother and child are standing outside a simple cottage. The only objects of significant interest are a plant on the windowsill and a copper pan at their feet. The young woman is scolding the little girl for reasons unknown. The child, who appears to have a ball in her left hand, presses a corner of her green apron to her right eye to wipe away her tears. Léon Caille, who was born in Merville (Nord), studied for two years at the painting academy in Lille, before winning a place at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts, Paris, under the tutelage of Léon Cogniet. He exhibited genre paintings at the Salon from 1861 and in London in 1878. His small-format paintings convey the intimacy and affection of family life.