Provenance

E.J. van Wisselingh & Co.

Dutch, est. 1838

Explore selected works

Shown from the waist up, a woman with pale, peachy skin reads a book with one elbow propped on a grassy bank in this horizontal painting. The woman’s body is angled to our right, and she looks down at a pale green-covered book held in her right hand, which is in the lower left corner of the composition. The woman has dark brows over hooded eyes, and her dark brown hair falls loosely behind her shoulders. She has a round face, straight nose, and pale lips. She touches her hair with her left hand, to our right, with that pinky delicately crooked. One strap of a sleeveless, pearl-white chemise falls off the shoulder of that arm, and the dress nestles around her belly, revealing much of the other breast. Leafy trees and gray rocks are loosely painted behind her. The artist signed the painting in the lower right corner, “G. Courbet.”
Gustave Courbet, A Young Woman Reading, c. 1866/1868, oil on canvas, Chester Dale Collection, 1963.10.114

A Young Woman Reading

Gustave Courbet · c. 1866/1868 · oil on canvas ·  Accession ID  1963.10.114

Vincent van Gogh, Man Polishing a Boot, 1882, graphite and gray and black wash, heightened with white watercolor on wove paper, squared lightly with graphite, The Armand Hammer Collection, 1991.217.68

Man Polishing a Boot

Vincent van Gogh · 1882 · graphite and gray and black wash, heightened with white watercolor on wove paper, squared lightly with graphite ·  Accession ID  1991.217.68

We look slightly down onto a baby tucked into an oval-shaped cradle with a woman sitting on the far side looking down at the child in this vertical painting. Both the woman and baby have light skin. The cradle is draped with a sky-blue, scallop-edged cloth decorated with pink flowers and green leaves. A curtain of the same material is tied above so it hangs down behind the head of the cradle from the top center of the composition. The baby’s dark eyes are wide open, and he seems to gaze ahead. His cheeks are flushed peach, and his coral-pink lips are pressed down in a crescent shape. The baby’s head is wrapped in a white hood with a royal-blue bow or decoration over the right ear, to our left. Two loosely painted, round, salmon-pink shapes on either side of the child suggest hands emerging from the under the white blanket. In his left fist, to our right, the baby holds a white drum on a pumpkin-orange stick, with red and white forms, possibly feathers, at the top. The dark green handle of a pinwheel lies across the baby’s legs in the cradle. Another green, vertical form overlapping the edge of the crib suggests that another toy is clipped or propped there. It is difficult to tell if the pinwheel in the crib has canary-yellow and mauve-pink blades or if there are two, overlapping toys. The woman sits with her back to us but is angled so we see her profile looking down at the baby. Her face is painted with broad strokes of sand brown and parchment white. Her dark hair is pulled back under a white cap, and she wears a charcoal-gray and black, vertically striped dress with a white collar. Her back rests against the slats of a wooden chair, which seems to dissolve into the loosely painted, fawn-brown area in the lower right corner. The cradle sits next to a bed, mostly cut off by the left edge of the painting, with a golden-brown blanket or cover. Eggshell-white cloth seems to hang around the bed and along the wall behind the woman. The scene is loosely painted with visible brushstrokes.
Claude Monet, The Cradle - Camille with the Artist's Son Jean, 1867, oil on canvas, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, 1983.1.25

The Cradle - Camille with the Artist's Son Jean

Claude Monet · 1867 · oil on canvas ·  Accession ID  1983.1.25

Jacques Villon, Woman in Blue at the Beach, 1902/1904, watercolor over graphite on wove paper, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, 1995.47.71

Woman in Blue at the Beach

Jacques Villon · 1902/1904 · watercolor over graphite on wove paper ·  Accession ID  1995.47.71

We look across a glimmering river toward docks, about a dozen small boats, and a mustard-brown, boxy building under a bridge that crosses the width of the canvas in this horizontal landscape painting. A patch of green grass lines the riverbank in the lower right corner of the canvas. The land curves away out of sight, and then back into the scene below the abutment of the bridge along the right side of the painting. From the ivory-colored abutment, the straight deck of the bridge is supported by two shallow, iron-gray arches, and the bridge extends off the left side of the composition. Dots of red and gray on the bridge suggest vehicles or pedestrians. The river below is painted with blended strokes of silvery gray, icy blue, and pale lavender purple around the low-sided sailboats. One turquoise-colored houseboat is pulled up to the riverbank to our right. The long, rectangular, flat-topped building is pierced with two stories of windows, which are outlined in spruce green against the golden yellow. The horizon line runs just below the bridge deck, just under halfway up the composition. The sky above is painted with longer swipes of cream white and smoke gray. Loose, short brushstrokes are visible throughout, especially in the water, boats, and bridge. The artist signed the painting in the lower right corner, "Claude Monet."
Claude Monet, Bridge at Argenteuil on a Gray Day, c. 1876, oil on canvas, Ailsa Mellon Bruce Collection, 1970.17.44

Bridge at Argenteuil on a Gray Day

Claude Monet · c. 1876 · oil on canvas ·  Accession ID  1970.17.44

The painting depicts a rural scene with a wide, cloudy blue sky over a riverbank. On the right there are tall, dark green trees that stretch up to the top of the painting. On the left, we see the river stretching into the distance, with a section of grassy ground closer to us. On the left, a woman with a white cloth over her head and a dark pink skirt stands facing us, next to a dirt path framed with tall grass and pale flowers. The woman is painted with loose, visible brushstrokes. To the left and right of her are two shapes that could be cows with their backs to us, both facing the water. The cow on the left is dark brown, while the one on the right is light brown with patches of white, and appears to stand in or right next to the shallow water. The color palette includes earthy tones such as greens, browns, and soft blues. The brushstrokes are visible, giving the scene a hazy look.
Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot, River View, 1868/1872, oil on wood, Gift of R. Horace Gallatin, 1949.1.2

River View

Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot · 1868/1872 · oil on wood ·  Accession ID  1949.1.2

The image is a watercolor painting showing a partial side view of a seated person wearing a hat. The person is holding a blue parasol and wearing a light-colored dress with dark accents. In the background, there is a pale blue sky and a pinkish-red vertical structure. The overall atmosphere of the scene is serene and delicate.
Jacques Villon, Woman in Pink at the Beach, 1902/1904, watercolor over graphite on wove paper, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, 1995.47.70

Woman in Pink at the Beach

Jacques Villon · 1902/1904 · watercolor over graphite on wove paper ·  Accession ID  1995.47.70

This painting shows a coastal scene with a rocky tan cliff on the left side extending down to the blue sea. The horizon is in the middle of the painting, with a bright, slightly cloudy blue sky above the sea. On the beach, a chaotic collection of dots and dashes of paint in white, black, blue, red, yellow, and pink indicate a large group of people gathered at the edge of the water. Many of the people appear to have white caps or bonnets on their heads. Behind the group of people, more smears of color suggest bundles on the beach, perhaps piles of cloth. Small gray and white boats drift on the water in the distance. The painting style is loose and expressive, with lines of color overlapping with one another. Details are suggested with dots and dashes of paint instead of being depicted clearly.
Eugène Boudin, Washerwomen on the Beach of Etretat, 1894, oil on wood, Ailsa Mellon Bruce Collection, 1970.17.17

Washerwomen on the Beach of Etretat

Eugène Boudin · 1894 · oil on wood ·  Accession ID  1970.17.17

Bibliography

1999

  • Heijbroek, Jan Frederik. Portret van een kunsthandel: de firma van Wisselingh en zijn compagnons, 1838-heden. Zwolle, 1999

  • p. 114-117