The Sleeping Gypsy by the French artist Henri Rousseau was painted in 1897. This depiction of a lion musing over the form of a sleeping gypsy woman on a moonlit night is a very recognizable and thought provoking image.
The Sleeping Gypsy was first exhibited by Rousseau at the 13th Salon des Indépendants where he tried unsuccessfully to sell the painting to the mayor Laval. The painting was then purchased by a private collector, where it remained until 1924. It was then brought by Mrs Simon Guggenheim in 1939 and handed to the New York Museum of Modern Art.Rousseau - Sleeping Gypsy
