The eldest son of Camille Pissarro, Lucien was sent to England in 1883 and met Esther Benhusen whom he subsequently married. On his return to France Lucien spent time both with his father in Eragny, sketching, experimenting with etching, and in Paris, where he prepared colour plates for printing and studied wood engraving with Auguste Lepère. From 1890 Lucien settled permanently in London and became involved in the English Arts & Crafts movement and established the Eragny Press in Epping with his wife Esther. Uniquely they not only designed their books, but personally engraved all the blocks and printed the editions. They were innovators in producing colour-printed books from sequenced registered blocks. Les Lavandières was one of an occasional series of independent prints, published in Paris.