''Holyday'', later also known as ''The Picnic'', is an oil painting by French painter

James Tissot Jacques Joseph Tissot (; 15 October 1836 – 8 August 1902), anglicized as James Tissot (), was a French painter and illustrator. He was a successful painter of fashionable, modern scenes and society life in Paris before moving to London in 1871 ...

(1836–1902), painted in 1876. Tissot moved to England in the year 1871, when he was thirty five years old and settled there. Before moving to London, Tissot was a successful painter of Paris society. The painting shows a group of elegantly dressed men and women during a picnic at the pond in the painter's garden. The painting is characterized by the attention to detail and vivid colours. ''Holyday'' is held in London's

Tate Gallery Tate is an institution that houses, in a network of four art galleries, the United Kingdom's national collection of British art, and international modern and contemporary art. It is not a government institution, but its main sponsor is the U ...

Description

''Holyday'' was painted in the back garden of Tissot's London home, near the Lord's Cricket Ground. 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 muse and lover, Kathleen Newton, who appears to avert her eyes from the scene. The men in the painting belong to the well-known ''

I Zingari I Zingari (from dialectalized Italian , meaning "the Gypsies"; corresponding to standard Italian ') are English and Australian amateur cricket clubs, founded in 1845 and 1888 respectively. It is the oldest and perhaps the most famous of the ' ...

'' cricket club, judging by their yellow, red and black hats. The women are overdressed, one of Tissot's idiosyncrasies. The atmosphere is sensual and relaxed and demonstrates a British sense of superiority. Stylistically, ''Holyday'' is striking because of its crystal-clear representation. The work is hyperrealistic and greatly detailed, with sparkling colors. The focus on daily scenes comes from

Impressionism Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement characterized by relatively small, thin, yet visible brush strokes, open composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities (often accentuating the effects of the passage ...

, which was ''en vogue'' in the Paris of those days. The influence of Manet can be recognized, also in the choice of subject, reminiscent of his '' Le déjeuner sur l'herbe'' (The Luncheon on the Grass). However, ''Holyday'' does not provoke but is suffused with a British conservatism.

History

Tissot's ''Holyday'' was shown in 1877 in London's

Grosvenor Gallery The Grosvenor Gallery was an art gallery in London founded in 1877 by Sir Coutts Lindsay and his wife Blanche. Its first directors were J. Comyns Carr and Charles Hallé. The gallery proved crucial to the Aesthetic Movement because it prov ...

as a pendant for '' A Convalescent'', which was also painted by Tissot in his yard. He made studies for both paintings in a single sketchbook. He probably intended the two to be a

diptych A diptych (; from the Greek δίπτυχον, ''di'' "two" + '' ptychē'' "fold") is any object with two flat plates which form a pair, often attached by hinge. For example, the standard notebook and school exercise book of the ancient world w ...

, though they were quickly separated when sold and never exhibited together afterward. ''A Convalescent'' is in the

Manchester Art Gallery Manchester Art Gallery, formerly Manchester City Art Gallery, is a publicly owned art museum on Mosley Street in Manchester city centre. The main gallery premises were built for a learned society in 1823 and today its collection occupies three ...

; ''Holyday'' was acquired by the

in 1928.

References

* A. Butler: ''Het kunstboek''. Waanders, Zwolle, 2004.

External links

''Holyday'' at Tate Gallery
{{James Tissot 1876 paintings Paintings by James Tissot Collection of the Tate galleries Food and drink paintings Works about picnics