In the Park, Paris

1891

Maurice Prendergast

Artist, American, 1858 - 1924

Four women sit in a row outside in front of a balustrade and under leafy trees in this loosely painted, horizontal composition. The scene is created with dabs and visible strokes so details are difficult to make out. The women all wear long-sleeved, long-skirted gowns and hats. They hold parasols, and touches of pale green or white suggest gloves. They all have pale-toned skin, and their brown hair is up. The woman to our left wears a pale eucalyptus-green dress over a brick-red bodice. Her elbows are tucked into the cloak or jacket of the outer garment, and she holds a carnation-pink parasol with a few streaks of sky blue. The next woman wears a plum-purple dress with puff-shouldered sleeves and a veil that covers her hat and is gathered under her chin. Her parasol is pearl white. The next woman wears the same shade of carnation pink for her dress and holds a pale yellow parasol, and the fourth woman sits facing our left in profile. She wears a white dress and holds a powder-blue parasol. The shadows cast by the women and the four tree trunks and canopies behind them create muted purple shadows on an apricot-orange ground. Beyond the balustrade, stretches of very pale green, indigo purple, and icy blue suggest grass, a row of trees, and the sky. The texture of the canvas is visible between the forms, like between the edges of the balustrades and the green that fills in the gaps between or around the women’s clothing. The artist signed the lower left corner, “PRENDERGAST.”

Media Options

This object’s media is free and in the public domain. Read our full Open Access policy for images.

Artwork overview

  • Medium

    oil on canvas on board

  • Credit Line

    Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon

  • Dimensions

    overall: 23.81 × 34.61 cm (9 3/8 × 13 5/8 in.)
    framed: 43.82 × 54.77 × 3.18 cm (17 1/4 × 21 9/16 × 1 1/4 in.)

  • Accession

    2014.18.44


Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Paul Mellon [1907-1999], Upperville, Virginia; bequest 1999 to NGA, with life interest to his wife, Rachel Lambert Mellon [1910-2014].

Associated Names

Inscriptions

lower left: PRENDERGAST

Wikidata ID

Q20190257


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