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The Bridge at Moret, April Morning (work of art)

Artwork Info

Created
1888
Artist
Alfred Sisley
Nationality
British
Birth/Death
1839-1899
Dimensions
25 1/2 × 36 1/4 inches (64.8 × 92.1 centimeters)

Credit

Gift of Julian and Josie Robertson

Object Number
2023.5.3
Culture
British French
Classification
Paintings
Department
European to 1910

Key Ideas about this Work of Art

  • This painting depicts a bridge in Moret-sur-Loing (Moret), France. 
  • Artist Alfred Sisley moved to the town in 1880 and painted various locations there.
  • Sisley was an impressionist landscape painter. He used quick, loose brushstrokes and bright paint colors to create his outdoor scenes. 
  • The two tallest structures in this landscape were originally built during the Middle Ages. They are still standing today. 

Learn More

Alfred Sisley was an impressionist landscape painter known for his sensitivity to light and color. Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement that began in Paris. Impressionist paintings depict outdoor scenes made up of quick, loose brushstrokes and bright paint colors. These types of paintings often show different weather conditions, the movement of water, or the effects of sunlight at different times of day.

In this painting of a bridge in Moret (a small town near Paris) Sisley captured the vibrant tones of a spring morning. He moved to Moret with his family in 1880. Like many impressionist painters, Sisley found inspiration for his work in the French countryside. He painted different views of this bridge and other nearby locations. The cathedral and the gate with a pointed roof are famous medieval structures that still stand today.

Sisley preferred to paint en plein air (outdoors). He produced more than 900 oil paintings, around 100 pastels, and many drawings throughout his art career. 

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Images

  • An oil painting of a landscape scene. The lower half of the painting is the water of a river in shades of blue, green, and tan. A stone bridge with arched openings underneath cuts through the middle of the painting. There is a stone building on an island that is attached to the middle of the bridge. Above that is a village skyline made of stone buildings. The tallest of the buildings is a cathedral with a spire that is just left of center. Above the buildings is a blue sky with a few white clouds.

    The Bridge at Moret, April Morning