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Gustave Caillebotte
Gustave Caillebotte (19 August 1848 – 21 February 1894) was a French painter and impresario who combined aspects of the academic and Impressionist styles in a unique synthesis, who was a member and patron of the Impressionists, although he painted in a more realistic manner than many others in the group.
Gustave Caillebotte was born on 19 August 1848 to an upper-class Parisian family living in the rue du Faubourg-Saint-Denis. His father, Martial Caillebotte (1799–1874), was the inheritor of the family’s military textile business and was also a judge at the Seine department’s Tribunal de commerce.
Caillebotte earned a law degree in 1868 and a license to practice law in 1870, and trained to be an engineer but became interested in painting and studied at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris. He met Pierre Auguste Renoir and Claude Monet in 1874 and showed his works at the Impressionist exhibition of 1876 and its successors. Caillebotte became the chief organizer, promoter, and financial backer of the Impressionist exhibitions for the next six years, and he used his wealth to purchase works by other Impressionists, notably Edouard Monet, Pierre Auguste Renoir., Camille Pissarro, Paul Cézanne, Edgar Degas, Alfred Sisley, and Berthe Morisot. Shortly after his education, he was drafted to fight in the Franco-Prussian war, and served from July 1870 to March 1871 in the Garde Nationale Mobile de la Seine.
After the war, Caillebotte began visiting the studio of painter Léon Bonnat, where he began to study painting seriously. He developed an accomplished style in a relatively short time and had his first studio in his parents’ home. In 1873, Caillebotte entered the École des Beaux-Arts, but apparently did not spend much time there. He inherited his father’s fortune in 1874 and the surviving sons divided the family fortune after their mother’s death in 1878. Gustave and his brother sold the Yerres estate and moved into an apartment in the Boulevard Haussmann in Paris.
Around 1874, Caillebotte had met and befriended several artists working outside the Académie des Beaux-Arts, including Edgar Degas and Giuseppe de Nittis, and attended (but did not participate in) the first Impressionist exhibition of 1874. The “Impressionists” – also called the “Independents”, “Intransigents”, and “Intentionalists” – had broken away from the academic painters showing in the annual Salons.
Caillebotte made his debut in the second Impressionist exhibition in 1876, showing eight paintings, including Les raboteurs de parquet (The Floor Scrapers) (1875), his earliest masterpiece. Its subject matter, the depiction of labourers preparing a wooden floor (thought to have been that of the artist’s own studio) was considered “vulgar” by some critics and this is the probable reason for its rejection by the Salon of 1875.
In common with his precursors Jean-François Millet and Gustave Courbet, as well his contemporary Edgar Degas, Caillebotte aimed to paint reality as it existed and as he saw it, hoping to reduce the inherent theatricality of painting. Perhaps because of his close relationship with so many of his peers, his style and technique vary considerably among his works, as if “borrowing” and experimenting, but not really sticking to any one style. At times, he seems very much in the Degas camp of rich-colored realism (especially his interior scenes); at other times, he shares the Impressionist commitment to “optical truth” and employs an impressionistic pastel-softness and loose brush strokes most similar to Renoir and Camille Pissarro, although with a less vibrant palette.
The tilted ground common to these paintings is characteristic of Caillebotte’s work, which may have been strongly influenced by Japanese prints and the new technology of photography, although evidence of his use of photography is lacking. Cropping and “zooming-in”, techniques that commonly are found in Caillebotte’s oeuvre, may also be the result of his interest in photography, but may just as likely be derived from his intense interest in perspective effects. A large number of Caillebotte’s works also employ a very high vantage point, including View of Rooftops (Snow) (Vue de toits (Effet de neige)) (1878), Boulevard Seen from Above (Boulevard vu d’en haut) (1880), and A Traffic Island (Un refuge, boulevard Haussmann) (1880).
Caillebotte painted many domestic and familial scenes, interiors, and portraits. Many of his paintings depict members of his family; Young Man at His Window (Jeune Homme à la fenêtre) (1876) shows René in the home on rue de Miromesnil; The Orange Trees (Les Orangers) (1878), depicts Martial Jr. and his cousin Zoé in the garden of the family property at Yerres; and Portraits in the Country (Portraits à la campagne) (1875) includes Caillebotte’s mother along with his aunt, cousin, and a family friend.
Caillebotte is best known for his paintings of urban Paris, such as The Europe Bridge (Le Pont de l’Europe) (1876), and Paris Street; Rainy Day (1877). The latter is almost unique among his works for its particularly flat colors and photo-realistic effect, which give the painting its distinctive and modern look, almost akin to American Realists such as Edward Hopper. Many of his urban paintings were quite controversial due to their exaggerated, plunging perspective. In Man on a Balcony (1880), he invites the viewer to share the balcony with his subject and join in observing the scene of the city reaching into the distance, again by using unusual perspective. Showing little allegiance to any one style, many of Caillebotte’s other urban paintings produced in the same period, such as The Place Saint-Augustin (1877), are considerably more impressionistic.
In Oarsman in a Top Hat (1877), he effectively manages the perspective of a passenger in the back of a rowboat facing his rowing companion and the stream ahead, in a manner much more realistic and involving than Manet’s Boating (1874).
Caillebotte’s masterpiece, Paris Street; Rainy Day (1877), uses bold perspective to create a monumental portrait of a Paris intersection on a rainy day. Caillebotte also painted portraits and figure studies, boating scenes and rural landscapes, and decorative studies of flowers. He tended to use brighter colours and heavier brushwork in his later works.
In 1881, Caillebotte acquired a property at Petit-Gennevilliers, on the banks of the Seine near Argenteuil, and he moved there permanently in 1888. He ceased showing his work at age 34 and devoted himself to gardening and to building and racing yachts, and he spent much time with his brother, Martial, and his friend Pierre Auguste Renoir. Renoir often came to stay at Petit-Gennevilliers, and engaged in far-ranging discussions on art, politics, literature, and philosophy. Caillebotte was a model for Renoir’s 1881 painting, Luncheon of the Boating Party.
Caillebotte died of pulmonary congestion while working in his garden at Petit-Gennevilliers in 1894 at age 45. He was interred at Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris.
Caillebotte was an artist of remarkable abilities, but his posthumous reputation languished because most of his paintings remained in the hands of his family and were neither exhibited nor reproduced until the second half of the 20th century. His early paintings feature the broad new boulevards and modern apartment blocks created by Baron Haussmann for Paris in the 1850s and ’60s. Seventy years after his death, however, art historians began reevaluating his artistic contributions. His striking use of varying perspective is particularly admirable and sets him apart from his peers who may have otherwise surpassed him. His art was largely forgotten until the 1950s when his descendants began to sell the family collection. In 1964, The Art Institute of Chicago acquired Paris Street; Rainy Day, spurring American interest in him. By the 1970s, his works were being exhibited again and critically reassessed.
Caillebotte’s Man on a Balcony, Boulevard Haussmann (Homme au balcon, boulevard Haussmann) (1880), sold for more than US$14.3 million in 2000.
Read moreShowing 1–100 of 158 results
Paris Street; Rainy Day 1877
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 1,189د.إThe Floor Planers 1875
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 1,159د.إLe Pont De L’Europe (The Europe Bride), 1876
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 1,039د.إRooftops in the Snow (Snow Effect) 1878
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 969د.إNude on a Couch 1880
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 1,039د.إL’homme Au Balcon, Boulevard Haussmann
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 959د.إMan at His Bath
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 999د.إChrysanthemums in the Garden at Petit-Gennevilliers 1893
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 1,029د.إRichard Gallo Et Son Chien Dick, Au Petit-Gennevilliers 1884
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 969د.إChemin Montant 1881
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 949د.إFloor-Scrapers 1876
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 939د.إOn the Pont De L’europe
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 919د.إLe Pont D’argenteuil Et La Seine 1883-2
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 939د.إThe Seine and the Railroad Bridge at Argenteuil-2
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 949د.إFruit Displayed on a Stand
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 939د.إCalf’s Head and Ox Tongue 1882
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 939د.إLa Seine à Argenteuil 1882
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 909د.إLa Seine à Argenteuil, Bateaux Au Mouillage 1883
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 909د.إSkiffs 1877
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 969د.إCanoe on the Yerres River 1878
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 949د.إLes Perissoires
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 999د.إBoating on the Yerres 1877
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 1,069د.إBoater Pulling on His Perissoire
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 959د.إBoating Party
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 1,029د.إThe Orange Trees 1878
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 929د.إPortraits in the Countryside 1876
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 979د.إMademoiselle Boissière Knitting 1877
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 959د.إA Game of Bezique 1881
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 1,189د.إLuncheon 1876
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 1,229د.إYoung Man Playing the Piano 1876
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 1,029د.إYoung Man at His Window
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 1,019د.إPortrait of a Man 1880
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 949د.إBalcony, Boulevard Haussmann, 1880
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 909د.إThe Piano Lesson 1879
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 949د.إInterior, Woman at the Window 1880
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 969د.إInterior, a Woman Reading 1880
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 949د.إWoman at a Dressing Table
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 969د.إBathers
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 979د.إFishing
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 999د.إCanotier Sur L’yerres 1877
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 939د.إLa Rue Halévy, Vue Du Sixième Étage 1878
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 909د.إBoulevard Des Italiens
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 919د.إView from a Balcony 1880
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 889د.إLe Pont De L’europe 1876
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 949د.إBy the River, the Effect of Morning Fog 1875
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 919د.إIris Bleus, Jardin Du Petit Gennevilliers
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 899د.إStudy For House Painters , 1877
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 959د.إSunflowers, the Garden in Petit-Gennevilliers
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 919د.إBed of Daisies 1893-Panel 1
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 1,159د.إBed of Daisies 1893-Panel 2
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 1,159د.إBed of Daisies 1893-Panel 3
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 1,159د.إBed of Daisies 1893-Panel 4
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 1,159د.إBoat Moored on the Seine at Argenteuil
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 899د.إSailing Boats at Argenteuil 1888
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 909د.إBoats on the Seine
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 919د.إVoiliers Sur La Seine à Argenteuil 1893
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 1,089د.إSailboat Moored on the Seine Argenteuil
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 929د.إLa Berge Et Le Pont D’argenteuil 1882
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 929د.إThe Banks of the Seine 1891
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 939د.إThe Yellow Boat 1891
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 929د.إLa Place Saint-Augustin, Temps Brumeux 1878
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 919د.إThe Nap 1877
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 989د.إHenri Cordier 1883
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 949د.إPortrait De A. Cassabois 1877
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 899د.إPortrait D’homme 1881
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 929د.إBy the Sea
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 929د.إPortrait D’un Collégien
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 919د.إHomme Portant Une Blouse
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 939د.إPortrait De Georges Roman 1879
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 969د.إPortrait of Eugène Daufresne Reading 1878
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 939د.إPortrait of Madame Martial Caillebotte 1877
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 919د.إPortrait of Madame X…
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 969د.إLa Femme à La Rose 1884
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 949د.إUn Soldat 1881
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 1,009د.إPortrait D’eugène Lamy 1888
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 939د.إLe Pont De L’europe, Étude Partielle 1876
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 1,019د.إSelf-Portrait with Easel 1876
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 989د.إNaked Woman Lying on a Couch 1873
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 1,009د.إThree Fishermen in a Boat
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 979د.إRegattas at Villers
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 949د.إSunflowers Along the Seine
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 929د.إLes Champs, Plaine De Gennevilliers, Etude En Jaune Et Vert 1884
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 899د.إLe Parc Monceau 1877
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 929د.إLa Plaine De Gennevilliers 1877
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 929د.إThe Plain of Gennevilliers, Yellow Fields 1884
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 919د.إLaundry Drying, Petit Gennevilliers, 1888
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 919د.إDrying Laundry on the Banks of the Seine, 1892
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 969د.إBord D’un Canal, Près De Naples 1872
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 1,009د.إTrouville, Beach and Villas 1882
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 939د.إVillas à Villers-Sur-Mer 1880
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 919د.إUne Villa à Trouville 1882
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 909د.إVillas à Trouville 1884
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 919د.إBy the Sea at Trouville 1884
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 909د.إRive De La Seine Au Petit-Gennevilliers 1888
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 909د.إLe Jardin Du Petit Gennevilliers, Les Toits Roses
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 909د.إThe Blossoming Apple Tree 1882
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 909د.إRue Du Mont-Cenis, Montmartre 1880
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 899د.إMaisons à Argenteuil 1883
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 899د.إThe Small Arm of the Seine in Autumn 1890
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 909د.إThe Yerres, Effect of Rain
By Gustave CaillebotteSizes starting at 939د.إ