Etude d’arbre près d’un torrent en Italie c. 1826 - 1827

Camille Corot made this oil-on-canvas study of a tree near a stream in Italy sometime in the first half of the 19th century. Rather than using paint to disguise its inherent qualities, Corot celebrates the medium itself. He lets the strokes show, especially in the rendering of the foliage. You can see the many layers of paint he applied wet-on-wet to capture the effect of light filtering through the leaves. It's easy to forget that Corot was also a master printmaker, and he brings that graphic sensibility to his painting as well. The entire composition is a testament to Corot's plein-air approach: that is, his commitment to painting outdoors, in direct contact with the landscape itself. This ethos reflects a shift away from studio-bound academic art and towards the direct and personal experiences of modern life. By embracing this, Corot invites us to reconsider the value of direct observation and the importance of the artist's hand.