Alfred Sisley (1839–1899)
1870
Oil paint on canvas
54.5 x 73 cm
Acquired by Oskar Reinhart in 1923
This is one of a small number of paintings that Alfred Sisley made of Paris before turning his attention to the countryside and suburban areas around the city. It focuses on a particularly workaday aspect of the Parisian metropolis, the Saint-Martin Canal, which was then a key transportation route for goods. The view is enclosed by barges being unloaded at their moorings and the blocky form of a laundry boat on the opposite bank.
Sisley’s observation of the darkening clouds and his rendering of the choppy water with short brushstrokes demonstrate his early allegiance to the Impressionist technique.