Holyday

Jacques Tissot was a French painter and illustrator. He was a successful painter of Paris society before moving to London in 1871, after the fall of the Paris Commune. He became famous as a genre painter of fashionably dressed women shown in various scenes of everyday life.

This painting, also known as The Picnic is set in the artist’s garden in the wealthy north London suburb of St John’s Wood. St John’s Wood was considered a rather louche area and this picture of young people flirting, unnoticed by their sleeping chaperone, was considered by some to be rather vulgar. The painting shows a group of elegantly dressed men and women. The men are wearing the caps of I Zingari, an elite amateur cricket club. Autumn is coming, the leaves of the large chestnut tree are changing color, but the rest of the vegetation is still green and luxurious. The low sun shines a bright afternoon light on the scene. On the right is the painter's wife, Kathleen Newton, who appears to avert her eyes from the scene. 

I wish Warsaw’s autumn looked like this!!