Erwin Davis

American

Explore Selected Works

Edgar Degas, The Races, 1871-1872, oil on wood, Widener Collection, 1942.9.18

The Races

Edgar Degas · 1871-1872 · oil on wood ·  Accession ID  1942.9.18

Four people wearing earthy brown gather near a stream that runs through a lush forest carpeted and filled with moss, pine, and sage green trees and undergrowth, interlaced with thin, willowy tree trunks in this horizontal landscape painting. The forest fills the composition and the scene is dominated with tones of green, even in the reflections in the water. The stream runs from the lower right corner into the distance near the right side of the canvas. The trees and undergrowth are painted with blended brushstrokes, giving the scene a soft and hazy glow. Near the lower left corner, a woman kneels and helps a baby take a step toward a young girl, who approaches the pair with something gathered and held up in her apron. A boy climbs a tree nearby. A fifth person appears after close inspection, standing in and bending over the stream in the distance to our right. The scene is diffusely lit, with only a few bright spots in the canopy of the trees to suggest sunlight and sky beyond.
Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot, The Eel Gatherers, 1860/1865, oil on canvas, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. P.H.B. Frelinghuysen in memory of her father and mother, Mr. and Mrs. H.O. Havemeyer, 1943.15.1

The Eel Gatherers

Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot · 1860/1865 · oil on canvas ·  Accession ID  1943.15.1