La Rochelle; L’Abreuvoir, Vue Prise Près Des Remparts, Avec La Tour De La Lanterne 

Editor: So this is Corot's "La Rochelle; L’Abreuvoir, Vue Prise Près Des Remparts, Avec La Tour De La Lanterne". It’s so serene. The muted colors create a really calming atmosphere. The eye is led so far back in the piece through the bridge and path! How do you interpret Corot's landscape here? Curator: Formally, the painting presents a careful orchestration of light and color. Note how Corot uses a limited palette of silvers, greens, and browns. Observe the textural variations achieved through brushstroke. He breaks up the clear water with dabs of opaque white that make it so appealing! Editor: Absolutely! What does that choice accomplish? Curator: It enhances the pictorial depth and contributes to a cohesive surface design. Further, observe the geometric organization within the landscape, it almost presents the tower as a vertical counterpoint in order to soften the dominating horizon, which serves to reinforce the work's compositional structure. Note, too, the framing trees... Editor: It's like a stage! And it contains the eye before releasing it into the background. I also didn't realize that the figures walking through the water were so prominent on first viewing; they’re such small elements, but integral to that overall feeling. Curator: Indeed. It seems Corot’s technique reinforces that these individuals serve more as spatial elements as opposed to portraiture. It's clear that Corot used visual organization for his main purpose, as his title indicates, to draw our eyes and give them reason to linger on an old lantern tower in France. Editor: It’s amazing how the formal elements really do all come together to make something so captivating. I wouldn’t have focused on the lantern tower specifically at first! Thanks so much.