Ernest Barthélémy Michel (1833 Montpellier - 1902 ibid.) Standing peasant girl with a sheaf of grain and an ear of corn Michel's work was inspired by Jean-François Millet and the Barbizon School. He studied under Alexandre Cabanel and François-Édouard Picot at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris. Michel first won the 2nd Prix de Rome in 1856 and then the 1st Prix de Rome in 1860 for his painting "Sophocle accusé par ses fils" (now in the Musée d'Orsay in Paris). From 1859 to 1876, Michel exhibited at the Salon in Paris, where he received a medal in 1870. In 1880 he was made a Knight of the Legion of Honour. Oil on canvas; signed and dated on the lower left. 1872. 80 cm x 56 cm. Frame. Oil on canvas. Signed and dated 1872.