Art Institute of Chicago

Point Breeze, the Estate of Joseph Napoleon Bonaparte at Bordentown, New Jersey

Attributed to Charles Lawrence (American, active 1813–1837)

Date

1817–20

Medium

Oil on canvas

Culture

Philadelphia

Department

Arts of the Americas

Institution

Art Institute of Chicago

Although based in Philadelphia, landscape and portrait painter Charles Lawrence was born near Bordentown, New Jersey, the site of the idyllic scene pictured here. Point Breeze was the name of the country estate owned by Joseph Napoleon Bonaparte (the older brother of the French emperor Napoleon I), who fled to America after his brother’s fall from power. Under a warm, golden light, Napoleon’s homestead presides atop a hill, with a stone bridge, lake, curving paths, gently sloping hills, and bucolic vegetation creating a picturesque vista. The artist’s tight, detailed style, infused with green and autumnal hues, aptly captures the romantic feel of this cultivated landscape.

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