Alfred Sisley, 'The Path to the Old Ferry at By', 1880

Here is a peaceful riverside scene. A small group has gathered on the little beach in the foreground. A few yards downstream, two washerwomen are kneeling on the bank, plunging their arms into the river as they scrub or rinse their laundry. Just beyond them we can make out the bonnet of a third looking down at the water. These miniature figures are almost lost in the landscape of trees, grass and the shimmering river. Almost half of the painting is taken up with the tree canopies, with the branches of one dominating the upper-right foreground.

In this painting, Sisley is almost as concerned about colour as he is about the view itself. The myriad of different blues and greens are reflected in the river and intensified in the sky. Light touches of white help to bring to life the surface of the water and the long grass on the bank. Sisley introduced contrasting notes of reddish-brown for the pantiled roofs of two village houses. These tiny touches of colour draw our eye through the blues and greens and deeper into the picture.

The title refers to a ferry service that took people across the river from By to Champagne-sur-Seine, which we can see as a cluster of white buildings on the far bank. It operated until 1864 and again briefly from 1870 to 1872. by the time this painting was made, the service had been defunct for nearly a decade.

At this time, Sisley’s financial circumstances suddenly changed. His father’s silk business, which had guaranteed a secure income for him, failed. So, in 1880 he and his family moved from the outskirts of Paris to cheaper accommodation in the village of Veneux-Nadon, between the River Seine and the forest of Fontainebleau, about 90 kilometres south-east of Paris. In 1882 they settled permanently in nearby Moret-sur-Loing. This painting has traditionally been dated to 1880. Sisley did not inscribe a date on the canvas, however, so it may have been made the following summer.

The change of environment seems to have been an inspiration to Sisley. He felt a sense of rejuvenation in his art and was particularly inspired by this stretch of the River Seine. He made a number of paintings near here, such as The Small Meadows in Spring (Tate, London). This view follows the path, but also allows a glimpse across the river to Champagne-sur-Seine. In 1882 he painted the women again in Washerwomen, Near Champagne (National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa). Here, he captured the same spot but from a more open viewpoint.

Not long after these paintings were made, Champagne was transformed from a riverside village into a large industrial site. The Schneider factory, which made electrical goods, was built here along with housing for its workers. After that, Sisley lost interest in the view.