Landscape at La Varenne-Saint-Hilaire c. 1864 PDR 94 Kunstmuseum Bern Bern, Switzerland
This tiny painting (approximately 9.5 inches by 12.5 inches) is another one that is part of the Pissarro exhibition at Wuppertal, Germany. I am especially interested in studying these early paintings closely because they clearly demonstrate that very early in his career, Pissarro was breaking the generally accepted rules and painting in a way that was different. He was, in fact, as interested in the paint on the surface of the canvas as he was in the motif. This thinking was radical for his time.
Southeast of Paris, the Marne River makes a big loop and La Varenne-Saint Hilaire is one of the little villages along the riverside. Pissarro made many paintings in this area in the early 1860s. This is no ordinary landscape. From the right front of the canvas, the road leads directly to the center and meets the river, which continues out of view because of the tall house on the right. If we imagine that the house isn’t there and we can see the river cutting across the full canvas, the road leading toward the river is perpendicular and forms a T shape. Beyond the river on the left, the hills slope gently down forming an angle which ends on the right side at the big block-shaped house. It is a study in geometric shapes that Pissarro filled with different colors and various brushstrokes. I can’t wait to see those brushstrokes up close and find out if they are all brushstrokes or if he used the palette knife as well.
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