The Race Track
c. 1891
Medium
gouache on canvas
Dimensions
overall: 80.5 x 114.9 cm (31 11/16 x 45 1/4 in.) framed: 97.8 x 134 x 6.9 cm (38 1/2 x 52 3/4 x 2 11/16 in.)
Classification
Painting
Department
CF
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon
Accession Number
1985.64.18
Art Historical Context
Jean-Louis Forain's *The Race Track* (c. 1891) captures the electric energy of late 19th-century Parisian horse racing, a glamorous pastime of the Belle Époque that drew crowds from all social strata. Painted in gouache on canvas—a medium blending the opacity and vibrancy of watercolor with the scale of oil painting—Forain renders a dynamic scene likely bustling with jockeys, thundering horses, and eager spectators. This large work (80.5 x 114.9 cm) showcases his skill in evoking movement and light, influenced by his Impressionist roots and close friendship with Edgar Degas, who also favored r...
About the Artist
Jean-Louis Forain
Jean-Louis Forain was born Louis Henri Forain on October 23, 1852, in Reims, France, to a family of modest means; his father painted ornamental signs. The family relocated to Paris when he was eight, where young Forain developed a passion for drawing inspired by the sculptures of Reims Cathedral and the masters at the Louvre, which he began copying at age fourteen. He received drawing lessons from...