Between 1883 and 1885, Twachtman lived in Paris and studied at the Académie Julian. This painting is one of several large landscapes that he painted during these years. Completed from a preliminary oil study also in the Museum's collection (1991.130), the picture depicts a scene at Arques-la-Bataille, a town four miles southeast of Dieppe, where the Bethune and two other streams flow together to form the Arques River. Its tonal style is reminiscent of both Japanese prints and Whistler's nocturnes.

Open full-size image