The Sleeping Gypsy (La Bohemienne endormie)
Oil painting on canvas • Henri Rousseau (French, 1844-1910)
Style & Movement
Naive Art / Post-Impressionism / Primitivism
Medium & Technique
Oil on canvas, employing meticulous flat areas of color, precise outlines, and naive rendering typical of the artist's self-taught approach.
Creation Period
1897
Dimensions & Format
Horizontal landscape format, approximately 51 inches by 69 inches (original dimensions in museum collection)
Subject Description
A dark-skinned woman in colorful Eastern-style garments sleeps soundly in a barren landscape under a full moon, clutching a mandolin and a pitcher, while a lion approaches to sniff her, creating an eerie yet peaceful surrealist encounter.
Condition & Value Assessment
Condition Assessment
The physical painting is in Excellent condition, preserved securely within the collection of the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York.
Estimated Market Value
Invaluable / Museum collection piece (estimated well over $100,000,000 if ever brought to market)
Auction Estimate
Not applicable as the work is held permanently in a major public institution.
Provenance History
Originally acquired by a Parisian charcoal merchant in 1897, later passed through various French collections before being acquired by Daniel-Henry Kahnweiler and subsequently entering the Museum of Modern Art in New York in 1939.
Art Historical Significance
One of the most famous and iconic masterpieces of the 20th century, representing the pinnacle of Rousseau's visionary, dreamlike aesthetic and exerting profound influence on early modernism and surrealism.
Notable Features
The striking contrast between the dangerous predator and the vulnerable sleeping figure, combined with the perfectly clear, geometric arrangement of the landscape and the luminous desert moon.
Condition Issues
None documented; stable museum-conserved state.
Conservation Recommendations
Standard museum environmental controls: monitored relative humidity (around 50%), stable temperature, and low-lux UV-filtered lighting.