Alfred Sisley

Durand-Ruel, Paris and New York

Duncan Phillips, Washington, D.C. (acquired from the above through Knoedler Gallery on December 22, 1920)

Paul Durand-Ruel, New York and Paris (acquired from the above on March 20, 1928 until 1929)

Lefevre Gallery (Alex. Reid & Lefevre, Ltd.), London

Durand-Ruel, Paris

Galerie Taménaga, Paris

Private Collection (sold: Sotheby's, London, June 30, 1987, lot 15)

Wilton Antiques (acquired at the above sale and sold: Sotheby's, London, November 28, 1989, lot 23)

Private Collection (acquired from the above)

Galerie Schmit, Paris

Acquired from the above by the present owner in 1999

New York, Durand-Ruel Galleries, Modern French Masters, 1920, no. 19

New York, Durand-Ruel Galleries, Exposition du Sud-Est, 1936, no. 61

London, Alex. Reid & Lefevre, Ltd., Pissarro and Sisley, 1937, no. 18 (as dating from 1882)

Paris, Galerie Schmit, Delacroix à Chagall, 1999, no. 46, illustrated in the catalogue

Emmanuel Fougerat, "Sisley,"  Médecines et Peintures, vol. 69, no. XII, Paris, n.d., illustrated p. 9

Gotthard Jedlicka, Sisley, Bern, 1949, illustrated pl. 31 (as dating from 1882)

Georges Besson, Sisley, Paris, 1954, illustrated pl. 44

François Daulte, Alfred Sisley: Catalogue raisonné de l'oeuvre peint, Lausanne, 1959, no. 657, illustrated

Raymond Cogniat, Sisley, New York, 1978, illustrated in color p. 72

Jacques Lassaigne and Sylvie Gache-Patin, Sisley, Paris, 1983, no. 198, illustrated in color p. 137

Richard Shone, Sisley, New York, 1992, no. 137, illustrated p. 172 (as dating from circa 1888)

The canvas has an old strip lining. The surface is stable and the impasto is intact. Under ultra-violet light, there are a few scattered spots and strokes of retouching in the sky, especially to the left of the church spire and in areas along the left and right framing edges. Otherwise, this work is in good condition. Colors: The colors are fresher and brighter than they appear in the catalogue illustration.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

This exquisite view of the small town of Moret-sur-Loing dates from 1887-88 and is one of Sisley's great Impressionist landscapes, created at the height of the artist's career. In Moret-sur-Loing, Temps de pluie, Sisley's vibrant brushwork depicts a specific moment, with broad areas of color in the sky to indicate time of day, and dappled, loose strokes on the street to convey shadow and the reflection of the wet road. We know that it is a light rain rather than a downpour, shown by the hints of blue in the sky, the clarity of the town, and the brightness of the street. It is precisely in these skillful contrasts that Sisley depicts the feeling of a bright rainy moment.

Sisley moved to Moret in 1880 and quickly felt inspired by the city which would remain his home until his death in 1899. He wrote of the place in a letter to the critic Adolphe Tavernier: "It is at Moret – in this thickly wooded countryside with its tall poplars, the waters of the river Loing here, so beautiful, so translucent, so changeable; at Moret my art has undoubtedly developed most... I will never really leave this little place that is so picturesque" (Richard Shone, Sisley, New York, 1992, p. 123). During his years at Moret, Sisley produced a series of canvases depicting the same motif at different times of the day. Despite his financial difficulties, there was a demand from both collectors and dealer Durand Ruel for attractive landscapes. Christopher Lloyd wrote of Sisley's paintings of the late 1880s and early 1890s: "All the experience of the previous decades was blended in these canvases which amount to the summation of his output: the paint is richly applied with the impasto more pronounced than in previous works, the brushwork more insistently rhythmical, the execution more rapid, and the color more vibrant" (Christopher Lloyd, "Alfred Sisley and the Purity of Vision," Mary Ann Stevens, ed., Alfred Sisley, New Haven, 1992, p. 24).

The present painting was once in the collection of Duncan Phillips (1886-1966), who was one of the first collectors of Impressionist and Modern Art in the United States and the founder of the Phillips Collection in Washington D.C.