Montmartre, la rue des Saules

Montmartre, la rue des Saules (1894) depicts one of the most storied streets of the Montmartre hill in Paris — the rue des Saules, a narrow, winding lane that in the 1890s retained much of its village character, with low houses, vineyards (the Clos Montmartre survives today), and the informal social life of a neighborhood that had not yet been fully absorbed into the tourist infrastructure of cabarets and dance halls. In 1894, Montmartre was undergoing rapid transformation: the Sacré-Cœur basilica was under construction at its summit, artists and writers flooded its cheap studios, and the Moulin Rouge and Chat Noir had made it a destination for Parisian nightlife. Luce's view of the rue des Saules focuses on the quieter, more residential character of the hill — the cobbled lane, the low roofline, the glimpse of gardens over walls. This is consistent with his preference for the less celebrated corners of working-class Paris over its tourist attractions, and the year 1894 — when Luce himself was briefly imprisoned following the anarchist bombing campaigns — gives the quiet street scene a retrospective quality of sanctuary.

The winding street recedes into the middle distance, with the characteristic buildings of old Montmartre — low houses, stone walls, wrought-iron gates — depicted in warm ochres and the pale grey of Parisian limestone. The handling reflects Luce's developing mature style, with divisionist touches animating the wall and pavement surfaces.