The Seine and the Railroad Bridge at Argenteuil (La Seine et le pont du chemin de fer d'Argenteuil)

Caillebotte?s unfinished painting of the railroad bridge that carried urbanites to and from central Paris demonstrates his Impressionist technique. The painter articulates the strict geometries of the bridge?s concrete piers and iron trestles with highly individualized brushstrokes. Most notably, Caillebotte defines the edges of the muscular columns with unpainted portions of canvas rather than with a drawn contour. Within a broad horizontal canvas, he offers a plunging perspective with a distant train approaching the span.