Large building with a French flag, the Louvre Museum, in the middle left. Brown trees in the foreground, and on the low horizon are chimneys with plumes of smoke, a tall column, and other buildings. Between the Louvre and the trees is a green garden with circular path and a circular body of water. The sky is light blue and white.
During the last eight years of his life Pissarro's choice of subject changed dramatically. Instead of scenes of rural life he now chose urban subjects, painting over three hundred views of Paris, Rouen, Le Havre and Dieppe. This is one of twenty-eight views he painted of the Tuileries Gardens in the centre of Paris.
The elderly artist found it difficult to work outside and so he rented an apartment on the rue de Rivoli. From his second floor apartment he looked over the gardens and this allowed him to work in comfort, and it also gave him the chance to paint on a larger size of canvas.
On the left of the canvas is the Pavillon de Flore of the Louvre - with a flag flying in the breeze. Early in his career the young Pissarro, rebelling against officialdom, reportedly told Cézanne that it would be better if the Louvre burned down!
Credit: Gifted by Sir John Richmond, 1948
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