 Georges Braque.jpg)
Two banks of trees come in from either side, essentially framing the composition using a technique that has been used by artists for many centuries. The grouping of trees then meet at the top of the painting, leaving a window inside through which we can see the rest of the landscape. There are several brightly coloured hills which roll down to a series of houses and then the viaduct itself. The impressive construction is only partially visible, just enough to see two full archways which jut up over the houses below. Beyond that there is a further layer of perspective, with small hills and buildings appearing in the very far background, just in front of a bright, clear sky. Tones of blue, purple, yellow and green cover most items in this work though it is not quite as aggressive as some of his other fauvist pieces, perhaps a touch more subtle and understated in terms of his use of colour.
L'Estaque is a village close to Marseille. It's viaducts still stands proud today and remains one of the highlights of this region. Braque's own work has also helped to draw attention to its beauty, whilst the entire region of the South of France is famous for its abundance of light which has inspired artists for many centuries and has served them particularly well during the more expressive periods that came about more recently. One will recall the career of Van Gogh, for example, who changed his style completely after living in these brighter conditions.
We have included two other versions below, and you will immediately see the differences between these depictions. The colour scheme found in this page is very different, for example, and there is a slightly more relaxed approach to the brushwork. It feels expressionist in many ways, but the others can be considered sharper in detail than this one. Braque was a particularly versatile artist who achieved success in different styles as well as making use of a good number of different materials and mediums across his career. He even started using natural resources such as sand and pebbles at one point in order to add a certain level of tactility to his creations.
 Georges Braque.jpg)
