Alfred Sisley
Biography of Impressionist Landscape Painter, Associated with Monet and Renoir.
Visual Arts Guide

Alfred Sisley (1839–1899)

Sometimes called the 'forgotten impressionist', Alfred Sisley was and continues to remain the most underestimated exponent of Impressionism. This, despite being one of the most consistent plein-air painters of the movement. Confining himself largely to the genre of landscape painting, he rarely attempted figure painting and always found that the Impressionist style met his artistic needs. The English painters JM Turner and John Constable, along with the Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot may have influenced him.

Key works include Women Going to the Woods, 1866 (Bridgestone Museum of Art, Tokyo); Floods at Port Marly, 1876 (Musee d'Orsay, Paris) and The Walk, 1890 (Musee d'Art et d'Histoire, Nice).

Sisley's life, neglected to a certain extent like his work, is not well documented. There are few journals, photos or interviews of interest (he died just before the Impressionist movement really became famous). Born in Paris to English parents, his father was in the silk business. At the age of 18 he moved to London to study business but abandoned it a few years later to return to Paris to study fine art painting. In 1862 he studied with the Swiss artist Marc-Charles-Gabriel Gleyre, and also met Claude Monet and Pierre-Auguste Renoir. Together they started painting en plein air (outside), which was revolutionary at the time. In this way they captured a realistic impression of light, rather than trying to conjure the image later in their studios.

Few of Sisley’s early works survive, but they tended to be dark landscapes. Examples include: Lane near a Small Town, c.1864 (Kunsthalle, Bremen); Village Street in Marlotte, 1866 (Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo); Women Going to the Woods, 1866 (Bridgestone Museum, Tokyo) and View of Montmartre from the Cité des Fleurs, 1869 (Musee des Beaux-Arts, Grenoble). Like the English landscape artist John Constable, Sisley only liked to paint places he knew well, and he particularly liked the Seine and Thames valley areas. His works are what art historians would call 'pure' Impressionism. However, because his work never evolved outside of this area, his paintings have been largely neglected, and although he is relatively famous, very few of his works are known. It is suggested that he became a victim of style, a slave to Impressionism, rather than using it as a base to progress. To a certain extent it is true that his evolvement as an artist was not as dramatic as say Monet or Degas, both of whom lived into the 20th century.

Sisley was admitted to the Official Salon Exhibitions of 1866, 1868 and 1870. His paintings showed a keen interest in the colours of trees and buildings, and for the changing effects of light and clouds above a landscape. His style was sober, quiet and consistent. Examples of his later impressionist landscapes include: Sand on the Quayside, Port Marly, 1875 (Private collection); Snow at Louveciennes, 1875 (Musee d'Orsay); Market Place at Marly, 1876 (Kunsthalle Mannheim); Station at Sèvres, 1879; River Banks at St. Mammes, 1884 (The Hermitage, St. Petersburg); Snow Scene, Moret Station, 1888 (National Gallery of Scotland); The Canal du Loing at Moret, 1892 (Musee d'Orsay); The Bridge at Moret, 1893 (Musee d'Orsay); The Church at Moret, 1894 (Musee du Petit Palais, Paris) and Langland Bay, Storr's Rock - Morning, 1897 (Kunstmuseum, Bern).

Because Sisley’s subject matter was largely limited to landscapes, in which only a few characters may appear as decoration, many viewed his works as boring and lacking a personal touch. However, much the same can be said of Monet. As it was, Sisley died at the age of 59 in Paris, just a few short months after the death of his wife. His relatively early death put an end to the sign of renewal in his painting that was appearing in the 1890s. Overall, his paintings have been overshadowed by more famous artists of the time - in particular by Monet whose work he most resembles - although Sisley tended to be less experimental and worked on a smaller scale. His oil paintings did not sell well during his life and he died in poverty. That said, Sisley is now ranked as a major Impressionist and one of the great European landscape painters in the history of art.

• For information about contemporary artists in Ireland, see: Irish Art.
• For news about painters and sculptors from Ireland and abroad, see: Irish Art News.

• How to Update This Artist Biography of Alfred Sisley

Guide to Irish Art Exhibitions and Shows
© visual-arts-cork.com 2008 All rights reserved.