The Island and Bridge of San Bartolomeo, Rome

A cluster of warm, sun-baked buildings rises from the middle of the Tiber River in this peaceful view of Rome's Tiber Island, linked to the rest of the city by two ancient stone bridges. Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot painted the scene in 1825 during one of his early trips to Italy, when he was a young artist keen to study light and landscape with his own eyes. The water lies almost perfectly still, mirroring a soft blue sky dotted with drifting clouds, and the whole picture feels bathed in the easy warmth of a clear day.

Corot painted this outdoors, working quickly from life rather than laboring over every small detail. That approach gives the picture its fresh, unfussy feel, with loose brushwork and honest, sunny colors that ring true. He belonged to a generation of painters who helped clear the path for the Impressionists, and his Italian sketches are often admired for exactly this kind of plainspoken simplicity. The island itself carries a remarkable history, having housed a hospital since ancient Roman times, a tradition that still carries on today.

Part of the charm here is how everyday the whole thing feels. Corot was not reaching for drama or grand effects. He set out to capture a real place on a fine morning, and that quiet truthfulness is what has kept the painting appealing for so long.