Bathing women was a favourite theme of Valloton’s, both in paintings and in woodcut. The simplified lines with which he depicted women’s naked bodies gradually became more and more simplified, until in the 1893 woodcut sequence Les petites baigneuses (The Little Bathers) they had become as minimalistic as possible while still being recognisable.

Les petites baigneuses shows an absolute mastery of the technique of woodcut, and set a high standard for many other artists to follow.