In 1887 the first wave of American artists arrived at Giverny, a small village on the Seine northwest of Paris where Monet lived and painted. Among them was Theodore Robinson, a young artist who had spent four years steeping himself in the rigors of academic training, which stressed strong line, structured composition, and tonal values. In Giverny and Paris, Robinson and his colleagues were deeply affected by the work of the impressionists. In response, Robinson lightened his palette, loosened his brushwork, and placed greater emphasis on replicating the effects of light and atmosphere, retaining, nevertheless, a respect for compositional structure and realism.
Giverny represents one of Robinson's major subjects: landscape. Painted in Giverny, this image shows the technique that earned Robinson his reputation in America. From a vantage point of a hillside overlooking the Seine valley, he combined several views into an airy panorama. The strong composition and strict delineation of architectural elements in Giverny reflect Robinson's academic training, while the bright violet-and-green palette and deft, sure strokes of the light-dappled foliage reveal his understanding of impressionism. The underlying structure of Giverny features parallel diagonal lines that sweep upward across the picture plane and terminate at the horizon line near the top of the canvas, creating an open, airy vista. The strong lateral format permitted Robinson to use color freely, blending hues to achieve soft atmospheric effects. Despite the underlying geometry of his compositions, to the American eye, his works epitomized the French style.