Artwork
Bridge on the Saône River at Mâcon
Bridge on the Saône River at Mâcon is an oil painting by the Barbizon school artist Jean Baptiste Camille Corot. It dates from 1834 and is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art.
- Inscription
- Inscribed:below later inscription, lower left in pencil: Corot Pingebat 1834.; by later hand, lower left in brown ink: Corot 1834
About this work
Technique & Style
The work is an oil painting on paper mounted onto canvas, measuring 25 cm in height and 33.
The work is an oil painting on paper mounted onto canvas, measuring 25 cm in height and 33.6 cm in width. Corot's handling emphasizes atmospheric effects and tonal unity, with a restrained palette of silvery greys and muted greens to evoke the diffused light over the Saône River. The composition balances the vertical accents of trees and riverbank foliage against the horizontal thrust of the bridge, rendered with quick, rhythmic brushwork that dissolves detail into broader, atmospheric passages.
The paper support suggests an en plein air study, a practice Corot employed to capture immediate effects of light and atmosphere during his travels along French waterways in the 1830s.
History & Provenance
Bridge on the Saône River at Mâcon was painted by Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot in 1834. Its early ownership placed it with Captain Edward H. Molyneux in Paris; the painting was shown as part of the Molyneux collection in New York and Washington in 1952. In August 1955 the piece was sold to Ailsa Mellon Bruce, and following her death it was bequeathed to the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., in 1970. No evidence of a specific commission is documented.
Context
Painted in 1834 during Corot's travels through Burgundy, this small oil study on paper captures the bridge at Mâcon spanning the Saône with characteristic freshness and tonal economy. Its modest dimensions (25 × 33.6 cm) and paper support are consistent with Corot's practice of working directly before the motif, distinguishing such studies from his larger finished Salon compositions.
Overview
Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot painted Bridge on the Saône River at Mâcon in 1834, depicting a serene landscape. This oil on paper work showcases a bridge spanning the Saône River, framed by trees, with distant figures on the bank. Corot, a French artist, is recognized for his transitional style, blending classical approaches with the emerging practice of painting outdoors directly from nature.
Subject & Meaning
The painting presents a peaceful vista of the Saône River in Mâcon, centered on a stone bridge. Lush trees flank the waterway, creating a natural frame for the composition. Small figures can be discerned along the distant riverbank, adding a human element to the otherwise quiet natural setting.
The overall impression is one of stillness, enhanced by the soft, diffused light, suggesting either dawn or dusk.
Own this work as a print
Artist & collection
Artist
Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot (UK: KORR-oh, US: kə-ROH, kor-OH; French:; 16 July 1796 – 22 February 1875), or simply Camille Corot, was a French landscape and portrait painter as well as a printmaker in etching.
