Henri-Edmond Cross
In April 1893, Henri-Edmond Cross, who had been living in the South of France, received a letter from his friend, the famous post-Impressionist painter Paul Signac, saying: "Since we both know and love this sunny land, why don't we both raise a decorative monument to it?" For Signac, this monument became his work In the Time of Harmony that was hung in the town hall of Montreuil, for Cross it was The Evening Air.
Cross chose late afternoon when the heat and light were subsiding. This work expresses the plenitude of this time of day: the soft colors of the setting sun, the harmonious balance of horizontal and vertical lines, and the figures in attitudes suspended in time.
Although the painter stayed true to the dotted Neo-Impressionist technique, he had to adapt it to the large size of his composition. He used large rectangular brushstrokes that enhanced the decorative effect of the painting by creating a mosaic effect. Cross showed the painting at the third exhibition of the Neo-Impressionist group and the Salon des Indépendants in 1894, before giving it to Signac.
See you tomorrow!
P.S. Many famous painters lived and worked in Southern France. Among them, Vincent van Gogh was inspired both by the landscapes and people from that beautiful region. See an extraordinary van Gogh's portrait of Joseph Roulin here.