Isidore Meyers (1836–1917)
Au bord de l’eau (At the Water’s Edge), n.d.

Oil on panel
McMullen Museum of Art, Boston College, Gift of Charles Hack and the Hearn Family Trust

Jeffery Howe
Professor Emeritus, Art History

Meyers came under the influence of the French Barbizon painters in 1855. He adopted their practices of painting in the open air and of careful observation of nature and effects of light. Here he captures the coloristic subtleties of the sky and mirrored reflections in the water below. Two small figures stand on the shore, with a boat in dry dock behind them at right, and a small boat sails in at the left side of the canvas. His brush strokes follow the contours of the land and ships, while the water’s surface and distant trees are defined by parallel vertical strokes, creating an intricate surface texture.