Gustave Caillebotte

French·1848–1894

Impressionist painter and patron Gustave Caillebotte (1848-1894) combined rigorous academic drawing with Impressionist color and modern urban subjects. His bold perspectives and geometric compositions, particularly in Paris Street; Rainy Day, distinguish him from other Impressionists. Born to a wealthy family, he used his fortune to support struggling artists like Monet, Renoir, and Degas by purchasing their work, effectively keeping the Impressionist movement financially viable.

Caillebotte trained as an engineer before studying at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts under Leon Bonnat. He first showed at the Impressionist exhibition of 1876. His masterpiece The Floor Scrapers (1875) was rejected by the Salon for its "vulgar" subject of laboring workers. His bequest of 68 paintings to the French state (including works by Monet, Renoir, Degas, Pissarro, Sisley, Cezanne, and Manet) formed the foundation of the Impressionist collection at the Musee d'Orsay. Caillebotte died of cerebral hemorrhage at 45, his own reputation overshadowed for decades by the artists he collected. Paris Street; Rainy Day hangs at the Art Institute of Chicago.

Primary Genres

About Gustave Caillebotte

Caillebotte exhibited with the Impressionists from 1876, helping organize and finance their exhibitions. His precise drawing style was more academic than Monet or Renoir, combining Impressionist light effects with bold perspective and sharp architectural detail that distinguished his depictions of modern Paris.

Paris Street; Rainy Day (1877) dominates a gallery at the Art Institute of Chicago. The Floor Scrapers (1875) hangs at the Musée d'Orsay in Paris. The Musée d'Orsay also holds several of his other major works depicting Parisian life and landscapes.

Caillebotte used his family wealth to buy paintings from struggling Impressionists during their most difficult years, financially sustaining Monet, Renoir, Degas, Pissarro, and others when their work barely sold. He also paid rent for exhibition spaces and purchased supplies. Without his support, the movement might not have survived.

Caillebotte left 68 Impressionist paintings to the French state, including works by Monet, Renoir, Degas, Pissarro, Sisley, Cézanne, and Manet. After years of controversy, 38 paintings were accepted. This collection now forms the core of the Musée d'Orsay's Impressionist holdings.

Paris Street; Rainy Day (1877) and The Floor Scrapers (1875) represent his finest achievements. Both feature bold perspective and unflinching depictions of modern Parisian life. The Floor Scrapers was rejected by the official Salon for showing manual laborers, which critics deemed an inappropriate subject for such monumental treatment.

Gustave Caillebotte

Notable Works by Gustave Caillebotte

Paris Street; Rainy Day

The Floor Scrapers

Yerres, Soldiers in the Woods

Study for Le Pont De L'Europe

Self-Portrait with Pith Helmet

Yerres, Colonnade of the Casin

Woman Seated on the Lawn

Woman Seated Beneath a Tree

Woman at a Dressing Table

Willows by the Yerres

The Parquet Planers (The Floor Scrapers)

The Park on the Caillebotte Property at Yerres

Study for 'The Parquet Planers'

Naked Woman Lying on a Couch

Man at the Window

Landscape with Railway Tracks

Landscape with Haystacks

Landscape, Banks of the Yerres

Interior of a Studio

Horses in the Stable

Fishermen on the Banks of the Yerres

Billiards

A Road in Naples

Museums with Gustave Caillebotte's Work

Art Institute of Chicago

Private Collection

Musée d'Orsay

Musée des Beaux-Arts de Rennes, Rennes

Related Artists

Claude Monet

Edgar Degas

Camille Pissarro

Pierre-Auguste Renoir

Édouard Manet

Mary Cassatt

About Gustave Caillebotte

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