The first owner of Champs à Barbizon was the artist, Paul Signac, Seurat’s younger friend and direct disciple.
Painted in 1882, the period of most of Seurat’s plein air studies, Champs à Barbizon is a vibrant study of the furrowed fields around Barbizon. Two peasants plow the earth and the surrounding forest can be seen in the distance and also in the foreground of the composition, where Seurat most likely set up his easel. In his trademark fashion, Seurat exposes the wood of the panel to create dimension behind the distant silhouette of the forest. While Seurat’s pure “pointillist” studies (done primarily for La Grande Jatte) date two years later, the origins of this style are clearly evident in the present painting, where the quick, small dashes of juxtaposing color define the subject matter. While it is known that Seurat was influenced by Eugène Delacroix’s use of “broken colors”, it is also evident that the pastel technique and palette of Jean François Millet were clearly on Seurat’s mind when he painted Champs à Barbizon. Seurat was clearly aware of Millet’s pastels with their quick hatches and dashes of color.