Comblat-le-Château. Le Peuplier

Comblat-le-Château in the Cantal region of the Massif Central was an inland subject for Signac, who is typically associated with coastal and maritime work but ranged more widely during sketching campaigns. The poplar tree (Le Peuplier) subject connects him to the broader Impressionist and Post-Impressionist engagement with this distinctly French tree — Monet's poplar series on the Epte (1891) had made the subject famous, and Signac's version brings his divisionist analysis to the tree's characteristic verticality, the flicker of its leaves, and the atmospheric depth it creates in a flat landscape.

The poplar's vertical form is built from a complex mosaic of green, yellow-green, and blue-green dots that, at the intended viewing distance, resolve into a convincing approximation of the tree's luminous, flickering foliage. The sky behind is painted in complementary blues and violets that enhance the warm-to-cool contrast across the tree's mass.