LONDON.- Sotheby’s Impressionist & Modern Art Sale on 19 June includes four outstanding paintings created by three of the key players in the development, and subsequent success, of Impressionist art. Each of the four paintings embodies a different aspect of the movement, together providing an engaging insight into one of the most important periods of art history. The journey opens with Boudin’s Crinolines sur la plage (1866) and Monet’s Le Port de Zaandam (1871), marking the very beginnings of Impressionist painting, with both artists painting en plein air to capture fleeting ‘impressions’ of time and place. In a rare still-life painted the following decade, Monet adapts the pioneering techniques of this ‘new’ art to a traditional subject, and the story ends with Pissarro’s majestic urban view of fin-de-siècle Paris.

Helena Newman, Global Co-Head of Sotheby’s Impressionist & Modern Art Department & Chairman of Sotheby’s Europe, said: ‘These captivating works by Monet, Pissarro and Boudin are suffused with the light and colour that make Impressionist paintings so sought after to this day. The reappearance of such exquisite works on the market after over three decades represents a unique opportunity for buyers who wish to acquire the very best of Impressionist art.’

Commenting on this group, Philip Hook, Senior Specialist, Sotheby’s Board Director and author of Rogues’ Gallery: A History of Art and its Dealers, said: ‘Three of the works also share a connection with one of the most remarkable men in the history of the Impressionist movement – Paul Durand-Ruel. Durand-Ruel was drawn to contemporary art and to the process of painters painting pictures, and dedicated his life to developing a wider appreciation for such works, creating the modern art market in the process. No dealer was closer to an artistic movement than Durand-Ruel was to Impressionism – he was its promoter and its champion, its defender and its bankroller. Without him, and these revolutionary artists, art history might have looked very different.’

Claude Monet, Le Port de Zaandam, oil on canvas, painted in 1871 (est. £3,500,000-5,000,000)
A powerful and evocative depiction of the port of Zaandam in Holland, the striking silhouettes of the moorings and the pennants flying in the wind illustrate the profound impact that this setting had on the artist. Monet moved to ‘water country’ in the autumn of 1870, as the escalating Franco-Prussian war forced him and his young family to seek safety elsewhere. On arrival, the ravishing colours, many windmills and boats led him to state, ‘there is enough to paint… for a lifetime’ – and so he continued to explore his boldly inventive style for four months, capturing both the ‘Dutchness’ of his surroundings and the delicate atmosphere.

Le Port de Zaandam is one of a group of four works that take the port as their subject and was probably painted from the balcony of Monet’s room at De Beurs Hotel. Two bands of moving elements are separated by an alignment of houses and boats – a changing sky, with the rich pinks and yellows of the setting sun, and a complex world of reflections in the water below. The painting is appearing at auction for the first time since 1983, when it was acquired by the present owner. Monet and Architecture is currently the subject of an exhibition at the National Gallery, London which includes other examples from the Dutch period.

Camille Pissarro, Le Boulevard Montmartre, brume du matin, oil on canvas, painted in 1897 (est. £3,000,000-5,000,000)
Among the supreme achievements of Impressionism, Pissarro’s Boulevard Montmartre series captured the grandeur and commotion of the modern city – confirming his position as the preeminent painter of Paris. The artist accomplished this triumphant series by working methodically for over two months at the window of his room at the Grand Hôtel de Russie from dawn till dusk. Focused on a single compositional device, the artist determinedly investigated the different atmospheric conditions of the street. In this respect they take their place alongside Claude Monet’s celebrated series of haystacks and waterlilies.

This late winter scene of the boulevard veiled in mist is one of the last paintings from this iconic series remaining in private hands. It is coming to auction having been acquired in 1981, and was last exhibited as part of the critically acclaimed exhibition on Pissarro’s city scenes at the Royal Academy of Arts, London. The record price for a work by Pissarro is for another painting from this series that was sold at Sotheby’s London in February 2014 for £19.6 million.

Claude Monet, Citrons sur une branche, oil on canvas, painted in 1884 (est. £2,500,000-3,500,000)
This vibrant and remarkably spontaneous depiction of a branch of lemons was painted during a trip to the Italian Riviera, a region Monet delighted in and where he painted with great zest. In fact, the year before Monet had taken a trip there with his friend Pierre-Auguste Renoir, but made the decision to return alone in order to be able to concentrate more on his painting.

Monet painted far fewer still-lifes than landscapes throughout his career, and Citrons sur une branche reveals his ability to adapt his technique, developed through painting en plein air to a different genre. Here, he creates a dynamic composition by casting a bright light from the right, which in turn casts vivid purple shadows on the blue blackdrop. The glowing light sets the foliage ablaze in yellow and encircles the lemons with delicate pinkish hues.

This painting was acquired directly by Durand-Ruel, who included the work in several important early Impressionist exhibitions, among them the now legendary show in London’s Grafton Galleries. This is its first appearance on the market since 1985, and it has not been exhibited since that date.

Eugène Boudin, Crinolines sur la plage, oil on panel, painted in 1866 (est. £600,000-900,000)
Travelling to the coast of Normandy every summer, Boudin found himself captivated by the sight of the fashionably dressed figures parading on the beach. By the second half of the nineteenth century, the resort of Trouville had become a fashionable retreat for the French aristocracy. The artist rendered these elegant society figures in quick, Impressionistic brushstrokes highlighted by vibrant red, blue and yellow tones. It was in the harmony of the colours of these picturesque clothes that he found a contrast to the delicacy of the skies – masterfully incorporating the human figure into the landscape.

Boudin’s interest in capturing the fleeting effects of sunlight on sumptuous fabrics and the effect of a windy day on the flowing garments had a profound influence on the Impressionist artists – the beach scenes vibrating with subtle nuances of light, colour, shade and movement.

This beautiful early example of Boudin’s favourite subject is appearing at auction for the first time, having remained in the same private collection since 1985 and never previously been exhibited to the public.