Further down, in a distinct scene, tiny riders at a standstill watch two jockeys racing each other. It is as if Degas had had a premonition of the motion picture camera. Horses in a Meadow,'' done in 1871, is the ultimate masterpiece in this line. In the foreground, a large bay horse appears sideways, its head resting across the back of its white mate. The evocation of animal friendship is made more vivid by the desolate emptiness of the pale green landscape in which the horses stand.
Horizontal divisions emphasize the monotony.
Impressionism that was blossoming at that moment seems very far away. It is actually the very negation of Impressionism. The jockeys who ride away stand out clearly against the toned green of the turf. There is almost no detail to the grass of the paddock or the foliage of the trees in the distance, but great care has been brought to the rendition of the horses. The three figures in the foreground are based on a crisp drawing done a year or two earlier, proving the attention given to posture.