Fishing in Spring, the Pont de Clichy (Asnières)

Notes from the museum

The setting of this work is the river Seine at the Clichy Bridge near Asnières, a suburb north of Paris where Vincent van Gogh painted on several occasions with his friend and fellow artist Paul Signac . Van Gogh was inspired by Signac and Georges Seurat , both of whose work is on view nearby. Their technique, called divisionism, used science-based theories of color, which they applied in individual strokes to maximize luminosity. Although Van Gogh was only in Paris working among these artists for about two years, their influence can be seen here in his use of small brushstrokes of pure, brilliant color that combine to create the effect of light reflecting off the various surfaces represented in the composition.

Text: Art Institute of Chicago (open access). Our full story for this work is coming soon.

Slow Look

1. The whole picture Let your eyes wander. Where do they want to rest?
2. The light Find the brightest spot. What is it showing you?
3. The edges Look at what is half cut off at the borders.
4. One small detail Choose one tiny thing and stay with it for a while.
5. The whole picture again Step back. Has it changed for you?

About Vincent van Gogh

Vincent Willem van Gogh was a Dutch Post-Impressionist painter who is among the most famous and influential figures in the history of Western art. In just over a decade he created about 2,100 artworks, including around 860 oil paintings, most of them in the last two years of his life. They include landscapes, still lifes, portraits and self-portraits, and are characterised by bold colours and dramatic, impulsive and expressive brushwork that contributed to the foundations of modern art. His suicide at age 37 followed years of mental illness and poverty.

Painter profile →