When Pierre-Henri de Valenciennes’ oil studies were rediscovered in the 20th century, they caused quite a stir. In 1930, the works—which had been stored in a private collection for over a century as study material—found their way to the Louvre. At the time, the art world was entirely focused on Cézanne and Impressionism and therefore immediately recognized the groundbreaking nature of these studies, completely revising the image of Valenciennes: He went from being perceived as a boring academic painter to being hailed as a pioneer of Impressionism.

This oil study was created around 1800 in the vicinity of Rome, when Valenciennes was already an established landscape painter and professor at the Académie des Beaux-Arts in Paris. The French artist is considered one of the most important pioneers of plein air painting. As early as his first stays in Italy—40 years before this work was created—he had begun studying the landscape directly from nature in oil and capturing the fleeting effects of light and atmosphere in color.

Valenciennes was one of the first to systematically integrate working from nature into academic training. In 1800, he published his influential textbook Elements of Practical Perspective for Artists, in which he documented his experiences and methods. This treatise, which was quickly translated into other languages, ranks among the most important and influential art texts of the time.

Valenciennes encouraged his students to work outdoors at different times of the day and year, in changing light and varying weather conditions. Through his artistic practice and theoretical writings, he played a decisive role in establishing the oil study as an important educational tool and in popularizing plein air painting in Europe. In doing so, he laid the foundation for Impressionism.