The Auxerre Cathedral 1907

Gustave Loiseau captured the Auxerre Cathedral with oil on canvas. The composition is structured by a series of horizontal planes—the river in the foreground, the buildings in the middle ground, and the cathedral rising in the background. Loiseau employs short, broken brushstrokes, a hallmark of Impressionism, to render the scene. Notice how these strokes don't just depict objects, but also capture light as it flickers across the water and stone. This technique challenges traditional representational art, where clarity and detail were paramount. Instead, Loiseau focuses on the fleeting, sensory experience of the scene. The colour palette is muted, dominated by greens, browns, and greys, which reinforces the sense of atmospheric perspective, where colours fade into the distance. By using this technique Loiseau isn't simply documenting a place; he's inviting us to consider how we perceive and construct our reality through transient impressions.