L'Escalier des Lavandieres (Stairway of the Washerwomen)

Robert spent eleven years in Italy, where he first developed the compositional device of a large, light-filled arched structure surrounded by a complex of interconnected buildings. He reemployed the motif in this late work, adapting it to his native Paris. The paper support, relatively fluid brushwork, and attention to fleeting light effects suggest that this painting may have been executed en plein air (outdoors), a manner of working increasingly favored by artists in the period.