French painter Maurice de Vlaminck (1876–1958), along with Matisse, was labeled a fauve (wild beast) at a 1905 Paris exhibition for his use of strident, non-naturalistic color. By the 1920s, he had settled into the expressionistic landscape style embodied in this work. According to a 1964 press release, this painting was “the first work of art in the College’s permanent collection to be publicly exhibited.”
This watercolor was given to Carleton by Elizabeth Wallace, a friend of the College and of former Carleton president Larry Gould. Carleton awarded Wallace an honorary degree in 1949.