Bathers at Asnières

Georges Seurat completed this Bathers at Asnières in 1884, his first major composition. The monumental canvas stretches two meters high by three meters wide, depicting young workers relaxing along the Seine at Asnières, an industrial suburb northwest of Paris. Factory smokestacks rise in the background while the men cool off after their shifts.

Seurat was just 24 when he submitted this ambitious work to the Paris Salon. They rejected it. The snub led him to help found the Société des Artistes Indépendants, an organization that held exhibitions "without jury or prizes." The painting debuted at their inaugural show that same year. Critics remained puzzled, and recognition came only after Seurat's early death at 31.

Today the painting hangs at the National Gallery in London, where it's considered a highlight of the collection. The blue water and golden light showcase Seurat's emerging interest in color theory, though he hadn't yet developed his signature pointillist technique. That would come with A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte.