Femmes allant au bois

In 1866 Sisley was in his mid-twenties, working in the village of Marlotte on the edge of the Fontainebleau forest, where he had brought his friend Renoir the year before. The two were still students, figuring out how to paint the countryside directly. This street scene was one of two canvases the official Salon accepted from him that year, the first time the jury let him in. Down the village road three women set off toward the woods to gather firewood, while another turns for home. Sisley keeps the light plain and grey and the houses low and solid. The whole picture is built around that quiet road running back between the walls.