Photograph by Ed Pollard, Hasselblad H4D50 - 2011.

Excursion

Artist Henri Edmond Cross (French, 1856-1910)

Date1895

MediumOil on canvas

Dimensions44 1/2 x 63 3/4 in. (113 x 161.9 cm)
Overall, Frame: 54 x 72 x 4 in. (137.2 x 182.9 x 10.2 cm)

ClassificationsEuropean art

Credit LineGift of Walter P. Chrysler, Jr.

Object number77.416

Terms

People
Trees
Mauve
Green
Blue
Violet
Pink
White
Neo-Impressionism
Divisionism

Collections

European Art before 1945

On View

On view

DescriptionThis is a large oil on canvas painting utilizing the divisionist style of paint application. It is an outdoor scene and the viewer is placed with the party atop a bluff; it overlooks the green countryside below and the Mediterranean Sea. There are four figures and a dog in the foreground. The two women have their backs to the viewer. The woman standing shades her eyes, to look out of the scene, while her left hand touches the hand of a man examining the foliage. There are four more figures in the middle ground. The colors fade out as the scene moves into the background, displaying use of atmospheric perspective.

Label TextHenri Edmond Cross French, 1856–1910 Excursion, 1895 Oil on canvas Henri Cross shows workers using their newly won time off by vigorously enjoying nature, in this case, the seaside on the Mediterranean coast. While Claude Monet and Vincent van Gogh wanted to show their truthfulness to nature by producing their small, sketch-size paintings out-of-doors and on the spot, Cross and other "neo-Impressionists" went back to the traditional system of making large finished works in the studio. Gift of Walter P. Chrysler, Jr. 77.416