This oil, painted in 1878 shortly after the death of Minette and before the birth of Ludovic-Rodo, shows Mme Pissarro sewing in front of a window in their home at Pontoise. She is absorbed in her task, calm and detached. Pissarro has concentrated on her face and the curling ironwork of the balcony, in heavily worked strokes of gentle colours, to create a mood of intimacy and hard work.
