The Impressionist painter Alfred Sisley was born to an English merchant in Paris in 1839. After commercial training in England, where he studied the works of Turner and Constable, he returned to Paris in 1860, determined to become a painter. He studied under Charles Gleyre, in whose atelier he became acquainted with Frédéric Bazille, Claude Monet and Pierre-Auguste Renoir. He began painting en plein air in the Forest of Fontainebleau, and henceforth painted mainly landscapes. He was first represented at the Paris Salon in 1866. When his family went bankrupt during the Franco-Prussian War, Sisley ceased to be financially independent. The gallerist Durand-Ruel began representing him in 1872 and presented a solo exhibition of his works in 1883. Sisley’s works were in the first three Impressionist exhibitions. He became known for his serene depictions of the Seine. He died in Moret-sur-Loing in 1899.
