Place de la Concorde in Paris, study

Barvitius was one the most sensitive artists, who painted the place de la Concorde. In this small oil sketch he captures, above all, the impressions of light, the repartition of mass and accents of various hues. He left out architecture and subdued the traffic - the emotional impact of the picture is primarily due to the moment chosen by Barvitius - shortly before nightfall. With its fresh, yet subdued colours and lively, unrestrained brushwork this painting is one of the best works of Czech Realism. The large definitive version of 1866 was exhibited at the Paris Salon and immediately afterwards was sold to Philadelphia.