The Seine at Bougival
A quiet stretch of the Seine at Bougival, west of Paris — riverside houses, poplars and a towpath under a wide sky.
Bougival
The painting depicts a real landscape or cityscape. The precise viewpoint the artist used may be unknown, so the marker shows the general area.
The Seine at Bougival — at a glance
- Artist
- Alfred Sisley (1839–1899)
- Year
- mid-1870s
- Movement
- Impressionism
- Place
- The Seine at Bougival, west of Paris
- Viewpoint
- The towpath along the river — the Seine, banks and towpath remain; the village is now a suburb
- Medium
- Oil on canvas
- Dimensions
- c. 51 × 65 cm
- Now at
- Currier Museum of Art and other collections
Overview
Alfred Sisley painted the Seine and its banks at Bougival repeatedly in the 1870s, when he lived nearby. These views typically show the broad river, a towpath and low wall along the near bank, poplars and riverside houses, small boats, and a large sky. They are oil on canvas, about 51 by 65 cm; a well-known version is in the Currier Museum of Art, Manchester, New Hampshire.
Where was The Seine at Bougival painted?
Scholarship Bougival is a village on the Seine about 15 km west of central Paris, between Chatou and Louveciennes, famous in the 1860s–80s for its riverside restaurants and the bathing spot of La Grenouillère nearby. Sisley lived at nearby Marly and Louveciennes and worked along this stretch of river. Bougival is now a quiet suburb; the Seine and the wooded banks remain, and the towpath can still be walked, though the specific houses have changed.
What is in the painting?
The river runs across the picture, calm and pale. A towpath and low wall edge the near bank, with a walker or two; tall poplars and the roofs of riverside houses stand behind. On the water, a small boat and reflections; above, more than half the canvas is a light, cloud-filled sky. The colour is fresh green, blue-grey and cream.
Look closely
The towpath and wall
A path and low wall edge the near bank, with a walker or two.
The poplars
Tall poplars behind the houses give the picture its verticals.
The broad sky
More than half the canvas is light, cloud-filled sky — the source of the mood.
Analysis
Composition and technique
A horizontal river and towpath with poplars for verticals, under a broad Impressionist sky.
Scholarship Sisley builds the picture from the horizontal of the river and path and the verticals of the poplars, and gives generous space to the sky, which he treats as the main source of the picture's light and mood — a mild, breezy day.
History & provenance
Sisley's Bougival river views are in museums including the Currier Museum of Art and private collections.
Sources
- Currier Museum of Art, Manchester NH — collection entry for Alfred Sisley, ‘The Seine at Bougival’
- MaryAnne Stevens (ed.), ‘Alfred Sisley’ (Royal Academy, 1992)
Related paintings
More by Alfred Sisley
The Bridge at Villeneuve-la-Garenne
Le chemin de la Machine, Louveciennes
Also connected to Bougival
