Utrillo - Notre-Dame Cathedral

Known as the painter of Montmartre, Utrillo spent most of his career depicting that neighborhood, but here he chose a different subject: Notre-Dame Cathedral on the Île de la Cité. He was likely inspired by Monet's Rouen Cathedral series.

There's no particular technical flourish on display; Utrillo seems simply to have painted the cathedral faithfully, as he saw it. One detail stands out, though: unlike the other doors, the cathedral's entrance is painted red, a quiet reflection of the anxiety he carried at the time. As the son of Suzanne Valadon, muse to the Impressionist painters, Utrillo grew up never knowing his father amid his mother's free-spirited love affairs—and that unease stayed with him throughout his life.