Notre Dame de Paris

Robert William Vonnoh

National Gallery of Art

This painting depicts a riverbank over which a stone bridge stretches. In the distance, Notre-Dame cathedral is visible in the center of the painting. The cathedral's silhouette stands out against the soft gray and blue sky. It is painted in shades of gray, with some hints of seafoam green and rosy pink. Closest to us, on the bottom left, is a group of people standing by a staircase that leads up to the stone bridge. A cart and horse are nearby on the right, standing by the edge of the water. The bridge is filled with a crowd of figures, including people, horses, and carts. The people in the painting are suggested with small dots and dashes of paint and have little detail. Trees in shades of green, red, and yellow ochre line the street at the opposite side of the bridge. The brushstrokes in the painting are thick and fluid, giving the scene a hazy look.