By the Sea. A Spring Day

Unlike many of his friends, Liljefors only lived for short periods in France. On his travels in 1883, 1884 and 1887, he visited the artist colony in Grez-sur-Loing. This is where he painted this unexpected composition of the view across the Loing – with the red prow of a boat only just visible at the left edge. In a letter dated spring 1884, Liljefors describes Grez: “A river flows through the vil…