A Rocky Landscape

A sandy path runs down the middle of a rocky barren ravine. This view, with its high horizon and full-frontal close-up depiction of the path and rocks, is particularly original. The location is probably that of Les Sables du Jean-de-Paris, a sandy hillside topped with boulders and trees within the Gorges d’Apremont, in the Forest of Fontainebleau. It was one of the areas particularly favoured by Rousseau, who painted a number of views in the vicinity. Furthermore, it was one of the four areas included in his petition submitted in 1852 to Emperor Napoleon III asking for the forest to be protected from further tree-felling, particularly oaks.Other painters associated with the Barbizon School, including Diaz, also painted in the area, but none of his views quite match this composition for its audacity. Rousseau’s paint handling is also bold. The central path and rocks to either side are finished in heavy grey and cream paint, thickly applied with a dry brush and possibly a palette knife, resulting in a highly textured and fragmented surface.