Fir Trees in Les Trembleaux, near Marlotte
(Sapins aux Trembleaux à Marlotte)

• Henri-Joseph Harpignies
• (1819–1916)
• 1854
• Oil on canvas
• Robert Lehman Collection, 1975
• (1975.1.183)

Henri-Joseph Harpignies left a handwritten note on the back of this canvas stating that he painted the scene from life in the Forest of Fontainebleau. He chose a vertical format to emphasize the soaring height of the fir trees lining the path, along which a man and child walk slowly in shadow. Sunlight illuminates the dense trees on the hillside in the distance, creating a vivid contrast with the foreground. With loose brushwork and a tonal range of greens, golds, browns, and blues, Harpignies conveyed the unique atmosphere of the Forest of Fontainebleau.