beside the easel

Rowboat, ca. 1800's Born on 1829 in Paris, France Paul Désiré Trouillebert was a French Barbizon painter. Often compared to Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot for his very similar treatment of mood and trees, in fact one of Trouillebert's paintings was sold by a collector to the son of Alexandre Dumas (author of The Three Musketeers ) as a Corot with a forged signature. However, on this post I will be examining in closer detail why the style of Trouillebert is much more individual and distinct from Corot. In Rowboat above, Trouillebert varies the thickness and variety of the trees in this asymmetrical composition. What is beautiful about this painting is how the main source of light is a mysterious white glow at the horizon line of this very overcast day with the clouds becoming warmer as they near the top of the painting before turning dark to suggest imminent rain. Fishermen on a boat is not an entirely original theme, admittedly but the way in which Trouillebert's palet