Title: Houses near Orléans

Artist: Baptiste-Camille Corot

Houses near Orléans About 1830 Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot French, Paris 1796–Ville-d'Avray 1875 Oil on paper, mounted on millboard In this vivid outdoor study of an unidentified village, Corot sharply delineated the rustic buildings against a cloudless sky and accentuated their volumes through the play of light and shade. By leaving the foreground in a relatively undefined state, he further concentrated the viewer's attention on the main subject. The stamp reading "Vente Corot" (Corot Sale) in the lower-right corner indicates that this work was sold after the artist's death in his estate sale. Its present title derives from the title given in the sale catalogue, which is our only clue about the site depicted: Maisons aux environs d'Orléans.