Bridge at Poissy (Pêcheurs à ligne)1881 · Study 2022.432

Context from the museum

This surprising, naturalist painting by the renowned French academic-realist Ernst Meissonier depicts a man and a woman in small boat on the river Seine at Poissy, a small town about 15 miles northeast of Paris. The fashionably dressed figures, presumably members of the new urban class at leisure, are fishing in the shade of several trees on the bank. The man wears straw hat, his shirt sleeves casually rolled up, while the woman stands in the boat extending her pole over the water.

Museum description reproduced from its CC0 open-access record. Read the original catalog entry.

A detail to notice

Renowned British art critic John Ruskin marveled at Meissonier’s ability to paint minute detail after examining his paintings at length with a magnifying glass.

Observation supplied by the Cleveland Museum of Art.

Read the dimensions before the image

The selected unframed measurement for Bridge at Poissy (Pêcheurs à ligne) is 56.3 cm wide and 33.7 cm high, equivalent to approximately 22.2 × 13.3 inches. Dividing width by height gives a format ratio of 1.67:1. The rectangular bounding area is 0.19 square meters; it describes the measured footprint, not the amount of paint or the monetary value.

On an illustrative 300 cm wall, the recorded width occupies 18.8% of the span before adding a frame. A centered placement leaves approximately 121.8 cm on each side before adding a frame. These are calculations by Physical Art For Crypto using museum measurements. They are not the museum’s display recommendations.

Questions to bring to your own collection

With Bridge at Poissy (Pêcheurs à ligne) in view, identify one feature you can point to, then distinguish what the museum records from your personal response. Keep its medium, oil on board, in your notes when comparing contemporary works.

• Which part of this horizontal composition catches your eye first?
• Would a 56.3 cm width still suit the space after allowing for furniture and a frame?
• What surface detail would you need to see in person or in a close photograph?