The Point, sunset

A dark headland reaches out from the left, its heavy brown shape mirrored in water so calm it barely moves. Overhead, the sky softens into pale yellows and dusty pinks, worked with loose brushstrokes that seem to swirl as the sun drops low. Tucked near the point sits a tiny boat, easy to miss, but it adds a gentle hush to the whole scene. Arthur Streeton painted this small study in 1890, catching a fleeting evening along the water before the colours slipped away.

Streeton belonged to the Heidelberg School, a circle of Australian painters who worked outdoors to record the particular light and feel of their country. Their approach is often called Australian Impressionism, and this little panel shows exactly why. Instead of labouring over crisp detail, he chased mood and the shifting hues of dusk, working fast on a small wooden board so he could finish before the sky changed. It is an unassuming piece, more a quick note than a grand statement, yet it reveals how easily he could make a plain evening by the shore feel worth a second glance.