Provenance
Arnold & Tripp, Paris, 1882 [according to Robaut 1905]. Georges Petit, Paris, 1883 [according to Robaut 1905]. Durand-Ruel, Paris, 1889 [according to Robaut 1905]. Mrs. Potter Palmer (died 1918), Chicago, 1892 [see Chicago 1933]; bequeathed to the Art Institute, 1922.
Accession Number
81509
Medium
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
60.8 × 73 cm (23 1/2 × 28 1/2 in.); Framed: 88.9 × 101.6 × 12.1 cm (35 × 40 × 4 3/4 in.)
Classification
oil on canvas
Credit Line
Potter Palmer Collection
Background & Context
Background Story
Jean Baptiste Camille Corot's Arleux-Palluel, The Bridge of Trysts (1871-72) is an oil on canvas depicting a landscape in northern France. Arleux-Palluel is a region in the Pas-de-Calais, and the Bridge of Trysts (Pont des Rendez-Vous) was a local landmark. Corot painted this work after the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-71, and the title's reference to trysts may carry a note of nostalgia for a peaceful past. The composition shows the bridge spanning a river or canal, with trees, fields, and perhaps figures in the landscape. Corot's handling is soft and atmospheric, the forms dissolving into the ambient light. The palette is restrained, dominated by the silvery greens and grays that are characteristic of his late work. This painting belongs to the final phase of Corot's career, when his style had achieved its fullest maturity and his influence was at its height. The Bridge of Trysts is a work of quiet beauty, capturing the peaceful character of the French countryside with Corot's characteristic poetry.
Cultural Impact
Corot's late landscapes represent the culmination of his career, achieving a perfect balance between observation and idealization that influenced the development of Impressionism.
Why It Matters
This landscape of the Bridge of Trysts captures the peaceful beauty of the French countryside, Corot's soft handling and silvery palette creating a vision of nature that is both specific and poetic.
