In Paris van Gogh was exposed to and influenced by Impressionism, Symbolism, Pointillism, and Japanese woodblock print genres which were overtime integrated into his works.

During that time he lived with Theo who leased a large apartment on Rue Lepic in Montmartre with space for a studio for his brother.

Three months later Vincent abandoned his studies with Cormon, but his education continued on an informal basis as he met local artists.

During 1886 he was introduced to Impressionist artists and their works, such as Edgar Degas, Claude Monet, Auguste Renoir, Georges Seurat and Paul Signac.

[3] In 1887 Van Gogh continued to make important connections with other artists who he befriended and exchanged paintings with, such as Louis Anquetin, Émile Bernard, Armand Guillaumin, Lucien Pissarro and Signac.

In the late 1880s the avant-garde painted the modern city, one modified significantly by the work of Baron Georges Haussmann, Napoleon III's Prefect of the Seine.

His plan was to build a modern city of "grand boulevards, bridges and parks", which figure into van Gogh's works of the Seine, but at an expense.

[4] The Seine (Latin: Sequana) is named for its snake-like course from inland France to the English Channel at Le Havre.

Paul Gauguin painted Pont d'Iéna, the future site of the Eiffel Tower, when the area was filled with homes and gardens.

Claude Monet, Édouard Manet and Auguste Renoir painted bridges, trees and sailboats at Argenteuil located in the northwestern suburbs of Paris.

[7] Longing for tranquil settings,[8] van Gogh began to paint beyond the city fortifications and along the banks of the Seine, in Asnières and the island of Grand Jatte.

[9] Upon arriving in Paris in March 1886, the Musée du Louvre was the first placed van Gogh visited, directly after exiting the train.

Beyond that was Asnières and La Grand Jatte island, also the scene of van Gogh's paintings of the Seine.

"[17] In one of van Gogh's early works of Porte de Clichy, one of the city gates into Paris, Gate in the Paris ramp, 1886 (F1401), image not shown, van Gogh began to experiment with adding brighter, contrasting colors to his paintings.

[8] In the 19th century Parisians took a short train ride to Asnières for boating, including rowing meets; festivals; and the "unrestrained atmosphere" of its dances.

[19] Influenced by Impressionism and Pointillism, van Gogh modified his traditional style and used vivid color, shorter brushstrokes and perspective to engage the viewer.

[3][21] In Asnières, within walking distance of Theo's flat in Montmartre, van Gogh painted parks, cafés, restaurants and the river.

It was made during a period where he explored the use of "dots" of paint set alongside contrasting colors, influenced by Georges Seurat.

[21] In 1885 Seurat made A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte with a technique of placing colored dots on a work which led a movement called "Neo-Impressionism", "Divisionism" and "Pointillism".

Van Gogh was one of the artists later called "Post-Impressionists" who was influenced by Seurat's style[23] that rejected realism and idealism to create a new genre based upon abstraction and simplicity.

Van Gogh learned from Seurat the beauty in simplicity and a means to convey messages in a more optimistic, light way than his work in the Netherlands.