Devant La Fenêtre, Ile D’yeu 1919

Henri Lebasque painted this scene, ‘Devant La Fenêtre, Ile D’yeu,’ with oil on canvas, and what strikes me is the simplicity of the application of the paint. It's as if he's figured out how to record an entire ocean view with just a few strokes. The texture here is smooth and deliberate, and the canvas almost breathes with light. See how he catches the folds in the sitter’s dress with these coral lines, and the way the light reflects from the surface of the water? He uses these same marks in the curtains to the left, drawing your eye to the edge of the frame and into the scene. The blue sash around the woman’s waist is mirrored in the trim of her hat. It's this repetition of color and form that gives the painting its rhythm, the same way that Bonnard was working with at this time. The longer I look, the more I feel the push and pull between stillness and movement, interior and exterior, and how Lebasque doesn’t want us to settle on one thing or another.