Bords de rivière 1868

Editor: This is "Bords de rivière", or "Riverbanks," painted in 1868 by Johan Barthold Jongkind, using watercolor and pencil on paper. There's a lovely tranquility to this small landscape; it feels very immediate. What do you make of it? Curator: Ah, Jongkind. What a master of capturing fleeting moments. I find this piece utterly charming because it embodies a sort of visual shorthand. Look at how he suggests the vastness of the sky with just a few washes of color! He wasn't interested in photorealistic details, more in capturing the essence, the *feeling* of the riverbank. Do you sense that almost romantic longing for nature, perhaps? Editor: Yes, I see what you mean, particularly in the delicate way he rendered the bare trees, it is definitely not just a factual record. Given the timeframe, would he have been influenced by the emerging Impressionist movement? Curator: Absolutely! Jongkind was a key influence *on* the Impressionists, especially Monet. He paved the way, daring to paint outdoors, *en plein air*, focusing on light and atmosphere rather than rigid form. And you can see those qualities so clearly here, in this very sketch. Imagine him, right there by the riverbank in 1868, swiftly capturing the scene before the light shifted! It makes it almost... intimate, doesn't it? Editor: Definitely, it makes you feel you’re there, by the river with him. I wouldn't have appreciated the speed and immediacy of it without your perspective! Curator: Art's all about connection, right? A conversation across time, a little flash of understanding. I’m glad we got to share it.