Impressionist trail in Rueil Malmaison

Renoir, Morisot, Manet and their followers came to set up their easels outdoors, en plein air, along the Seine, where they found such moving inspiration. Rueil Tourisme has set up a new Impressionist trail on the theme.

This walk has been conceived to help visitors discover more about the features that characterized the Impressionist aesthetic as well as the favorite themes that these bold artists favored. This trail also reflects their period, the modernity of the turn from the 19^th to the 20th century, a time when independence, leisure and creating out of doors came to the fore.

From the Parc des Impressionnistes to the Bois de Saint Cucufa (woodland) via the center of Rueil Malmaison, this Impressionist trail presents visitors with 13 stages around the town. Each features an explanatory panel including a QR code that gives access to further audio commentaries.

Along the banks of the Seine – the main inspiration for the Impressionists – today’s landscapes reflect the canvases the artists painted around here over a century ago. The story of the movement that revolutionized art is told along the way, as visitors follow in the footsteps of some of the most famous representatives of the new style, notably Monet, Renoir, Degas, Morisot and Caillebotte.

In the town centre, the trail encourages you to stop in front of several houses once lived in by Impressionist artists, as well as others close to the movement, and also reflects the significant period interest in Japan, a great source of inspiration for Monet, among others. Lastly, around the Étang de Saint Cucufa (a pond), post-Impressionist heirs of the movement are also evoked, notably Vlaminck.

Forming a bridge between nature and culture, the Impressionist trail in Rueil Malmaison invites visitors to feel the inspiration of the banks of the Seine, just as the Impressionists did.