Stanislas Lépine

Stanislas Lépine painted the Seine, again and again: its quays, bridges, barges and banks, in soft grey and silver light. His pictures are small, quiet and placid in mood, and he captured the changing atmosphere of the river rather than every detail.

Born in Caen in Normandy, he met Camille Corot in 1859 and became his pupil the following year, and Corot’s gentle tones are visible in his work. He took part in the first Impressionist exhibition in 1874, though he is not usually counted as an Impressionist himself. He won a gold medal at the Paris Exposition Universelle of 1889.

In A Quay at Caen and A Moonlit Canal, look for the narrow range of colour and the calm reflections that give his paintings their stillness.