# Washerwomen Descending a Quai Staircase

**Alexandre Lunois** (French, 1863–1916)  
1888  
transfer lithograph  
Image: 57.1 x 41.8 cm (22 1/2 x 16 7/16 in.); Sheet: 64.7 x 49 cm (25 1/2 x 19 5/16 in.)

Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art, 2021.141. [The museum's record](https://clevelandart.org/art/2021.141).

## About this work

Alexandre Lunois worked extensively in lithography, a relatively recent invention during his time that was rarely used by artists, making both reproductive and original works. This print reinterprets Honoré Daumier’s Washerwomen of the Quai d’Anjou , an 1850 canvas depicting laundresses carrying heavy bundles on a staircase adjacent to Paris’s Seine River. Although Lunois worked closely from Daumier’s painting, he reinterpreted some details, such as the shadows on the woman’s face, emphasizing the strenuousness of her labor.

_Text from the Cleveland Museum of Art._

Alexandre Lunois made this in 1888, aged 25. It is now at the Cleveland Museum of Art.

### How it was made

- **Lithograph.** Drawn on limestone with a greasy crayon or ink. The stone is kept damp, and the oily printing ink clings only to the drawing. Invented in the 1790s, it let artists print exactly as they drew.

### [Alexandre Lunois](https://www.ochreeditions.com/artists/alexandre-lunois)

French, 1863–1916

## Facts

- Type: Print
- Culture: France, 19th century
- The artist was 25
- Real size: about 22 × 16 in (57 × 42 cm). The 18 × 24 in print is close to life size.
- Century: 19th century
- Colour: white
- Rights: public domain (CC0 1.0); free to use for any purpose.

## Get it

- Free download, full resolution: https://img.ochreeditions.com/m/794.jpg?dl=1
- Image: https://img.ochreeditions.com/a/794/1920.jpg
- Giclée reproduction on Hahnemühle Photo Rag: 8 × 10 in $28; 11 × 14 in $38; 12 × 16 in $42; 16 × 20 in $56; 18 × 24 in $68
- Framed reproduction: 8 × 10 in $78; 11 × 14 in $98; 12 × 16 in $108; 16 × 20 in $138; 18 × 24 in $164
- Canvas reproduction: 8 × 10 in $58; 11 × 14 in $72; 12 × 16 in $79; 16 × 20 in $98
- Print-ready file: 8 × 10 in $2; 11 × 14 in $2; 12 × 16 in $3; 16 × 20 in $3; 18 × 24 in $3

Sizes stop where the museum's file would print below 150 pixels per inch. Everything sold is a reproduction, made to order. [Order a print](https://www.ochreeditions.com/art/washerwomen-descending-a-quai-staircase-cma-441006).