Justine Dieuhl in the Garden of Père Forest

Justine Dieuhl is sitting in a garden or small park-like area below Montmartre’s cemetery. The owner of this half-wild, half-cultivated garden was P�re Forest, an enthusiastic archer. The garden was open to the public, thus Lautrec, whose studio was nearby, often came here to paint in the open air.

The influence of van Gogh on Lautrec’s developing style as a painter is evident in numerous pictures, above all in the present portrait. Characteristic of Lautrec’s manner of painting at this time are the long, broad brush strokes with paint scarcely thinned at all.