
The Old Oakc. 1870
Jules Dupré painted this in about 1870, aged 59. It is now at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC. More about this work
About this work
The painting depicts a landscape with a field, trees, and a dramatic cloudy sky. Grass, rocks, and a group of large trees are visible in the center of the composition. Below the trees, there is a small shape that could be a person looking up. Farther back, there are some small triangular structures that might be houses. The brushstrokes are expressive and not much detail is visible in the smaller shapes. The grass and foliage are painted in earthy tones of brown, orange, and green, while the sky is blue with areas of thick gray and white clouds.
Description from the National Gallery of Art.
Jules Dupré painted this in about 1870, aged 59. It is now at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC.
How it was made
- Oil paint
- Pigment ground in a drying oil, usually linseed. It dries slowly, so painters could blend on the canvas, build up thin translucent glazes, and rework a picture over weeks. Canvas replaced wooden panels in the 1500s because it is lighter and can be rolled.
Rights and the museum’s record
Public domain. The National Gallery of Art has dedicated this image to the public domain under CC0, so anyone may copy, adapt and use it, for any purpose, without asking. Our prints and files are reproductions made from the museum’s image; the museum doesn’t endorse them.
- Object number
- 1949.1.5
- Credit
- Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington
- Type
- Painting
- Licence
- CC0 1.0 Universal
- Museum record
- See it on the museum’s site










