Bridges across the Seine at Asnieres 1887

Vincent van Gogh created "Bridges across the Seine at Asnières" with oil paint on canvas, using a heavily loaded brush. The materiality is key here, as he wasn't just painting a scene; he was building it. The visible brushstrokes aren’t blended away, but rather stand as testament to the labor of applying each daub of pigment. The paint seems to mimic the industrial landscape itself, with its mass-produced components and repetitive forms. The bridges, trains, and even the little boats on the water, all speak to the rise of industry and its impact on the everyday. Even the act of painting en plein air, outdoors, was a kind of labor. The image becomes a record of a specific time, and place, and of Van Gogh's own physical engagement with his subject. Ultimately, by foregrounding the material reality of the painting, Van Gogh invites us to see the connection between art, labor, and the rapidly changing world around him.