The Road in the Woods

Alfred Sisley executed The Road in the Woods in 1879. The painting's documented ownership begins with Léon Payen of Paris. Following Payen's death, the work appeared in a sale at Hôtel Drouot on June 29, 1916, where it was acquired by the dealership Durand-Ruel.

In 1919, Durand-Ruel transferred the canvas to Bernheim-Jeune in Paris. Subsequent records indicate the piece passed through the Galerie Georges Petit before being sold to collector Chester Dale on June 9, 1926. Dale retained the work until his death in 1962, after which it entered the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., as part of his 1963 bequest. This chain of custody is corroborated by curatorial files containing copies of Dale's personal papers.

Alfred Sisley's 1879 oil painting The Road in the Woods is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. The work entered the museum's holdings in 1963 as a bequest from Chester Dale, who had purchased it from Galerie Georges Petit in Paris on June 9, 1926. Prior to Dale's ownership, the painting passed through several dealers, including Durand-Ruel and Bernheim-Jeune, following its sale at the Léon Payen auction at Hôtel Drouot in 1916. While the provenance records detail these ownership transfers and sales, the available sources do not list specific public exhibitions or provide a distinct inventory accession number beyond its identification within the National Gallery of Art.

Alfred Sisley, a British painter born in France, created The Road in the Woods in 1879. This oil on canvas exemplifies his consistent dedication to landscape painting, a genre he explored almost exclusively throughout his career. The work captures a secluded woodland path, a subject frequently revisited by the artist, showcasing his commitment to rendering natural light and atmospheric conditions.

As a key figure among the Impressionists, Alfred Sisley distinguished himself through his unwavering focus on landscape. Unlike some contemporaries who diversified their subjects, Sisley remained committed to capturing the nuances of the natural world. His practice of painting en plein air (outdoors) was central to his method, allowing him to directly observe and translate the subtle shifts in light and weather onto his canvases.