Making a lyrical impression

This is the most recent painting added by Margaret and Raymond Horowitz to their collection of American Impressionism and Realism. The Horowitzes have formed their collection, subject of an exhibition (through May 9) at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., over 40 years.

"Lyrical," writes curator Nicolai Cikovsky, is a word these collectors often use "to describe what they most admire." It perfectly suits this painting, which shows the subtle difference between this artist's Impressionism and that of its French originators. Twachtman's art is personal. It is not overly concerned with factual accuracy. The indistinctness of his images, like sun through a mist, is suggestive. It invests observation with the character of intense memory rather than immediate presence.

Though he trained in Paris, Twachtman did not mix with Impressionists. But like Monet at Giverny, Twachtman made his home (in Greenwich, Conn.) and its surroundings the intimately intense preoccupation of his gently powerful paintings and pastels.