Fête at Pontoise
c. 1872
Medium
Graphite on tan wove paper
Dimensions
22.6 × 31.1 cm (8 15/16 × 12 1/4 in.)
Classification
graphite
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
80628
Art Historical Context
Camilleissarro’s “F at Pontoise,” around 1872, captures a lively public celebration in the small French town where the artist lived and worked during a formative period. Executed in graphite on tan wove paper, the drawing reflects Pissarro’s keen interest in everyday rural life and communal gatherings. At just over eight by twelve inches, the modest sheet invites close viewing, revealing the artist’s fluid line work and sensitive handling of light and movement. As founding member of the Impressionist circle, Pissarro often used drawings like this to record fleeting scenes that later informed ...
About the Artist
Camille Pissarro · 1831–1903
Camille Pissarro (1830-1903) stands as the patriarch of Impressionism, the only artist to exhibit in all eight Impressionist exhibitions and a mentor whose influence shaped the trajectory of modern art. Born Jacob Abraham Camille Pissarro on the Caribbean island of St. Thomas to a Jewish-Portuguese merchant family, he abandoned the family business to pursue painting, eventually settling in Paris i...