Gustave Caillebotte (Musée d'Orsay)

Gustave Caillebotte, Raboteurs de parquet, en 1875, huile sur toile, H. 102,0 ; L. 147,0 cm. , Don, 1984, © RMN-Grand Palais (Musée d’Orsay)/Hervé Lewandowski. Niveau supérieur, Salle 30. Gustave Caillebotte (1848 - 1894).
    "This painting is one of the first representations of urban proletariat. Whereas peasants (Gleaners by Millet) or country workers (Stone Breakers by Courbet) had often been shown, city workers had seldom been painted. Unlike Courbet or Millet, Caillebotte does not incorporate any social, moralising or political message in his work. His thorough documentary study (gestures, tools, accessories) justifies his position among the most accomplished realists."
    "Caillebotte had undergone a completely academic training, studying with Bonnat. The perspective, accentuated by the high angle shot and the alignment of floorboards complies with tradition. The artist drew one by one all the parts of his painting, according to the academic method, before reporting them using the square method on the canvas. The nude torsos of the planers are those of heroes of Antiquity, it would be unimaginable for Parisian workers of those times. But far from closeting himself in academic exercises, Caillebotte exploited their rigour in order to explore the contemporary universe in a completely new way."
    "Caillebotte presented his painting at the 1875 Salon. The Jury, no doubt shocked by its crude realism, rejected it (some critics talked of "vulgar subject matter"). The young painter then decided to join the impressionists and presented his painting at the second exhibition of the group in 1876, where Degas exhibited his first Ironers. Critics were struck by this great modern tableau, Zola, in particular, although he condemned this "painting that is so accurate that it makes it bourgeois"."
    Photo and data: Musée d'Orsay. Please click on the image to enlarge it.

Gustave Caillebotte, Vue de toits (Effet de neige), en 1878, huile sur toile, H. 64,5 ; L. 81,0 cm. , Don Martial Caillebotte, 1894, © RMN-Grand Palais (Musée d’Orsay) / Franck Raux. Niveau supérieur, Salle 32. Gustave Caillebotte (1848 - 1894).
    "At the fourth Impressionist Exhibition in 1879, Caillebotte presented over twenty-five works. These included two roofscapes of which this is one. The large number of paintings he submitted is a measure of Caillebotte's enthusiasm. He had joined the ranks of the Impressionists in 1876, and became one of the most active members of the group, not only as a painter but also as a patron, thanks to his considerable personal fortune."
    "Unlike his scenes of boating enthusiasts and portraits, also exhibited in 1879, his roofscapes provoked little comment at the time. However, they form an important link in the series of urban paintings for which Caillebotte is so popular today. In each of these paintings, whether street scenes of Haussmann's Paris or plunging perspectives painted from his balcony, he invites us to share his unusual view over the city. Besides, his Roofscape had few direct precedents other than in photography, although it is not certain that this was a source for the painter."
    "This painting, an eminently "modern" urban landscape, wonderfully describes the atmosphere of a winter's day in Paris. The heavy sky bathes the snow-covered roofs in grey, brightened with a few notes of soft pink. By thus turning his attention to the effect of the seasons on light and landscape, Caillebotte joined his Impressionist friends Monet, Sisley and Pissarro."
    "Given to the French National Museum by the artist's brother at the same time as the famous Floor Planers, Roofscape is one of the rare paintings by Caillebotte known to the public for a long time, the main part of his oeuvre having stayed in his family for several decades."
    Photo and data: Musée d'Orsay. Please click on the photo to enlarge it.

Gustave Caillebotte, Partie de bateau, vers 1877-1878, huile sur toile, sans cadre H. 89,5 ; L. 116,7 cm avec cadre H. 122 ; L. 149 ; EP. 11,5 cm, Achat grâce au mécénat exclusif de LVMH, Grand Mécène de l’établissement, 2022, © Musée d’Orsay, Dist. RMN-Grand Palais / Sophie Crépy. Niveau supérieur, Salle 30. Gustave Caillebotte (1848 - 1894).
    "Partie de bateau, chef-d’œuvre de Gustave Caillebotte et « icône » de l’impressionnisme encore en main privée, avait fait l’objet d’un classement au titre de « trésor national » le 30 janvier 2020. Grâce à l’exceptionnel mécénat de LVMH, l’œuvre vient de rejoindre les collections nationales. "
    "Ce tableau est exemplaire de la volonté de Caillebotte de produire un art véritablement moderne, exprimant un regard neuf sur le monde."
    "L’artiste choisit comme sujet les nouveaux loisirs de la bourgeoisie urbaine, dont il fait partie. Un homme, dont on ne connaît pas l’identité, fait de la barque sur l’Yerres, la rivière qui coule près de la propriété de villégiature des Caillebotte au sud-est de paris. Le peintre propose un cadrage « immersif » original qui place le spectateur dans la barque et cherche à abolir la distance entre l’espace du tableau et celui du regardeur."
    "Se dégagent de la composition – centrée sur cet homme qui nous fait face mais détourne le regard – une énergie, un sentiment d’assurance, mais aussi de solitude, caractéristiques de l’œuvre de Caillebotte. La touche esquissée et la gamme de tons bleutés évoquent la peinture de plein air, qui séduit de plus en plus l’artiste à cette époque."
    "Partie de bateau fait partie des tableaux envoyés par Caillebotte à la 4e exposition du groupe impressionniste en 1879. La nouveauté du point de vue, alliée à la banalité du sujet, choque les critiques même les plus avancés, et fait dire à certains que le jeune peintre est un provocateur, que ses peintures ne sont pas du grand art mais une simple « photographie de la réalité » (Emile Zola). A cette date, Caillebotte apparaît comme l’artiste le plus radical du mouvement. "

    Photo and data: Musée d'Orsay. Please click on the photo to enlarge it.

Gustave Caillebotte, Les Soleils, jardin du Petit Gennevilliers, vers 1885, huile sur toile, sans cadre H. 130,5 ; L. 105,8 cm avec cadre H. 158,8 ; L. 133,5 ; EP. 4 cm, © Musée d’Orsay, dist. RMN-Grand Palais / Sophie Crépy. Niveau supérieur, Salle 31. Gustave Caillebotte (1848 - 1894).
    2022, accepté par l'Etat à titre de dation pour l'établissement public du musée d'Orsay et de l'Orangerie-Valéry Giscard d'Estaing (conseil artistique des Musées nationaux du 08/12/2021, commission des dations du 13/12/2021, arrêté d'affectation du 22/07/2022).
    "Par sa taille, cette vue du jardin de Caillebotte est une des plus ambitieuses peintes par l’artiste. Elle participe à la redéfinition du genre du paysage opérée par les impressionnistes."
    "Le jardin est un des thèmes de prédilection de Caillebotte, qui prend d’abord pour sujet le parc de la propriété familiale de Yerres, puis, comme ici, son jardin au Petit Gennevilliers, situé à une dizaine de kilomètres de Paris. L’artiste devient un véritable « peintre-jardinier » comme son ami Monet à Giverny et tous deux s’enthousiasment pour les « soleils », grands tournesols cultivés uniquement comme plante d’ornement à cette date."
    "Pour Caillebotte, le rôle de l’artiste – comme celui du jardinier – est tout autant de magnifier que de soumettre la nature à sa volonté. Dans cette composition très structurée, l’épanouissement de la végétation est cantonné à la partie basse du tableau et s’oppose à la solide géométrie des architectures. Le choix d’un étonnant format vertical, et l’écrasement des plans provoqué par la juxtaposition du proche et du lointain, sont peut-être inspirés par l’exemple de l’estampe japonaise et par la photographie. En coupant brutalement les fleurs et maisons sur les bords, le peintre nous fait aussi comprendre qu’il ne s’agit que d’un fragment d’une réalité qui se poursuit au-delà du cadre. Caillebotte semble souscrire à la formule d’Émile Zola ; « l’œuvre d’art est un coin de nature vu à travers un tempérament ». "
    Photo and data: Musée d'Orsay. Please click on the photo to enlarge it.

Gustave Caillebotte, Henri Cordier, en 1883, huile sur toile, H. 65,0 ; L. 81,5 cm. , Don Mme Henri Cordier, 1926, © Musée d’Orsay, Dist. RMN-Grand Palais / Patrice Schmidt. Niveau supérieur, Salle 32. Gustave Caillebotte (1848 - 1894).
    "One of the most delightful aspects of Caillebotte's work is the series of portraits of personalities from his wealthy entourage. The identity of many of these has been lost today, but not so Henri Cordier (1849-1925), a specialist on Chinese affairs, and Professor of history, geography and the legal systems of the countries of the Far East at the School of Oriental Languages in Paris."
    "Cordier lived in China from 1869 to 1876. He edited a bibliography of works on the Chinese Empire, his Biblioteca Sinica published between 1878 and 1895, and was one of the founders, in 1882, of the Revue d'Extrême-Orient. The Great Encyclopaedia also tells us that he was awarded a third class grade in Mandarin Chinese."
    "We do not know how Caillebotte and Cordier came to meet, but they were certainly friends, although the artist never accepted commissions for portraits as he did not need to sell his paintings to live. Here, Caillebotte chooses to focus on Cordier's intellectual side. He is represented deep in concentration, surrounded by books, busy writing in an ill-defined position. The unusual composition, cropping the figure in half and combining it with decorative elements to fill the space, is very typical of Caillebotte's experimental work. In this respect he shows himself to be close to Degas."
    "The textural effects and palette of purplish reflections are found in other works painted by Caillebotte during this period."
    Photo and data: Musée d'Orsay. Please click on the photo to enlarge it.

AA: Visiting Musée d'Orsay I discover for the first time Gustave Caillebotte. Until now I have failed to register this major artist who was an interlocutor between realism and impressionism, important in several currents of art, but with a different vision beyond isms. Isms are of course terms for critics and historians, less relevant or meaningless for artists.

First I pay attention to the striking composition. There is a sense of dynamic energy in Caillebotte's frames. Bold high or low angle shots of cityscapes and interiors remind me of Fritz Lang and Kenji Mizoguchi. Perspectives can be daring. Caillebotte invites us to see in a new way.

Many of Caillebotte's paintings have remained in private collections. Last year, in 2022, Musée d'Orsay received as donations two major rural outdoors paintings, Partie de bateau and Les Soleils, jardin du Petit Gennevilliers, now prominently on display.

I read from the museum's notes that The Floor Planers is a pioneering portrait of the urban proletariat, in the same spirit as Courbet and Millet painted rural working people, which I also revisited today. The Floor Planers is a powerful tribute by the grand bourgeois artist to the nobility of the worker, four years after the Paris Commune. Cailleboutte elevates his subjects even more than his realist predecessors in making them look like Olympian heroes of the Antiquity.

Looking at the planers' gorgeous nude upper torsos I have a fleeting association to Ricardo Montalbán (an object of gay dreams who was straight) whom I saw in Mark of the Renegade on Sunday. Other paintings seem to confirm an intuition about a possible vein in Caillebotte's difference.

Caillebotte had a wide register of approaches, techniques and styles at his disposal, but there was a firm core, an inner vision, a unity in his works. His parcours remained short - he died at age 45 - but he was active during a golden age of French art, active in its currents both as an artist and as a visionary collector and patron of his fellow artists in a phase when they struggled for recognition.

There are prophetic accents in Caillebotte's works that predate later developments, such as the scuola metafisica and surrealism. In the passion for sometimes almost photorealistic painting there is a subtle touch of the uncanny.

...
I viewed seven paintings of Caillebotte (at the Niveau supérieur):
1. Vue de toits (1878) Salle 32
2. Henri Cordier (1883) Salle 32
3. Arbre en fleurs (1882) Salle 32
4. Les Soleils (vers 1885) (new acquisition 2022) Salle 31
5. Raboteurs de parquet (1875) Salle 30
6. Partie de bateau (vers 1877-1878) (new acquisition 2022: Trésor National) Salle 30
7. Voiliers à Argenteuil (1888) Salle 30