In this engraving, Louis Desplaces illustrates a lost painting by Watteau. The painting is in the tradition of 'singerie,' in which monkeys take part in human activities. The monkey sits despondent in front of his easel, palette and brushes in hand but not painting. The verse inscribed on the print disparages the lot of an artist who for the fame of the brush is forced to paint vanity portraits of ugly women to survive ('guenon' is a double-entendre for monkey and ugly woman). It also states that in order for the artist to paint monkeys, he must be as skilled as a monkey.