By the Eure River 1911

Gustave Loiseau has laid down strokes of dark green and brown, illuminated by touches of yellow, to evoke a landscape by the Eure River. I can imagine him there with his canvas, squinting at the scene, trying to capture the way the light filters through the leaves and reflects on the water. It’s not about perfection but about feeling. Look at the water; it is a mix of dark tones, a deliberate choice, I think, to avoid sentimentality. The scene is not picture-postcard perfect; it’s grittier, real. I wonder if Loiseau ever felt trapped by the need to represent something recognizable. Did he ever just want to let the colors run wild, to lose himself in the act of painting? I know I do, all the time! This painting reminds me that even within the confines of representation, there’s room for expression, for experimentation. We're all in conversation with each other, you know, as artists, trying to figure out how to make sense of the world through paint.