Spring at Chatou

The patch of water glimpsed through the trees on the left is the only feature linking this idyllic scene with Chatou. The small riverside town west of Paris was popular with day-trippers and artists.
Pierre-Auguste Renoir's subtle handling of the sunlit meadow is characteristic of how Impressionist painters used colour to convey atmosphere and feeling. Areas of yellow indicate patches of sunlight, alongside the deep green shadows cast by the young trees. The brushwork, loose to the point of abstraction, gives a sense of the tall grasses swaying in the breeze.