Alfred Sisley

M. Picq-Véron, Paris

Galerie Durand-Ruel, Paris (acquired from the above on June 25, 1892)

Mr Georges Hoentschel, Paris (acquired from the above on June 25, 1892)

Mrs Hoentschel, Paris (by descent from the above and until at least 1980)

Private Collection, Switzerland

Sale: Phillips, New York, May 7, 2001, lot 20

Noortman Master Paintings, Maastricht

Acquired from the above

Parid, Galerie Durand-Ruel, Monet, Pissarro, Renoir, Sisley, 1899

Paris, Galerie Georges Petit, Alfred Sisley, 1917, no. 39

Paris, Galerie Rosenberg, Sisley, 1939, no. 8

Ferrara, Palazzo dei Diamanti; Madrid, Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza; Lyons, Musée des Beaux-Arts, Alfred Sisley: Poète de l'Impressionnisme, 2002-03, no. 15, illustrated in the catalogue

Original canvas. Under ultra-violet light, the only restoration visible are a few spots in the extreme lower left edge and one spot in the upper center, right. The picture is in a beautiful state.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

After the Prussian Siege of Paris in 1871, Alfred Sisley decided to leave the capital with the hope of finding new subjects and a fresh creative impetus in the nearby village of Louveciennes.  Painted a few years later in 1874, the present work depicts a country road as it winds toward the neighboring village of Bougival.  Situated roughly thirty kilometers outside of Paris along the Seine, these towns and others were frequented by many of the Impressionists in the late 1800s.  Sisley, along with artists such as Monet, Renoir, and Pissarro, chose this environment as subject matter for their plein-air painting techniques.

During his time there, the artist took long walks between his home and Bougival, painting many scenes of the village, its winding streets and tree-lined roads. Chemin de Prunay à Bougival displays the effects of weather, season, and time of day that Sisley sought to capture in his depictions of the outdoors.  With quick brushstrokes and subtle tones of green, blue, and grey, Sisley presents a fleeting moment in time as well as the ephemerality of the natural light as it hits the landscape.  Such a scene may also have held significance for the artist, as it portrays a view of his place of refuge outside Paris after its recent catastrophe during the Franco-Prussian War.

Painted in the same year as the First Impressionist exhibition, Chemin de Prunay à Bougival displays beautifully the immediacy of plein-air painting in Sisley's depiction of the effects of light and color, the principal concerns of the Impressionists.