Gustave Caillebotte: "The Man on the Balcony"

These two works present similar subject matter, yet the one on the left does it in a strictly impressionistic style, while its counterpart involves Caillebotte's trademark cocktail of painting techniques. The former once again demonstrates that impressionism is not Caillebotte's forte. Though the perspective and the immediacy of city life are conveyed convincingly - as always, the background benefits - the leaning figure of the man is static, and the light effects are dubious: the smudging of the facial features and the balcony (more different colors!) does not appear artistically justified. The air was probably clear at that height, which should have rendered the eyes visible. It is as if the artist was led by a formula, instead of relying on inner instinct that would guide him to make correct decisions. It is obvious that Gustave Caillebbotte lacked that impressionistic instinct, or lacked it in its fullest and purest form. However, he does employ it with much more success in another similarly named piece.




In the painting on the right we see the back of the man: he is half turning towards the viewer, as if giving a last glance at the street, before turning towards the interior. The positioning (and the realistic depiction) of his arms and legs gives the satisfying illusion of movement. The far background lends to the feeling of intimacy by way of contrast; this man peeks from the inside to the outside - he does not participate as his neighbor does. Even though there might be something sentimental about this scene, it is more convincing, because it is consistent with the painter's style and shows maturity and control.

I have to add, however, that there's something tempting about the former work - perhaps it is the risk taken or maybe the detached and desolate sensation passed on by the open aerial angle (unlike in the framed balcony on the right) - perhaps Caillebbotte's conception still works, despite lacking clear definition.

Gustave Flaubert Caught on Canvas?

The face of the man in Gustave Caillebotte's "Paris Street" immediately struck me as familiar. I recalled the photograph in my copy of Madam Bovary, found it on the web, and here it is, for you consideration. I find the resemblance overwhelming, although it might be just the domineering mustache that is so similar.

However, besides such random trivia, two things make this piece particularly notable. First, it is the engrossing perspective that almost literally sucks the viewer into the illusion, perhaps even a dramatic perspective. I think that in perhaps an anachronistic fashion, this view is very cinematic, something I have noticed in other Caillebotte's works as well.

And second, it is the blazing, blinding white light that is caught by the umbrellas and the sidewalk. The two main figures are executed with precision reminiscent of academic standards, yet their umbrellas, although drawn with similar accuracy, exude a purely impressionistic color. This combination is no less then shocking. From globalgallery.com :

...Impresario who combined aspects of the academic and Impressionist styles in a unique synthesis...Caillebotte's originality lay in his attempt to combine the careful drawing and modeling and exact tonal values advocated by the academy with the vivid colours, bold perspectives, keen sense of natural light, and unpretentious subject matter of the Impressionists.

This synthesis is especially evident when comparing the foreground with the background: the former always tends towards the academic (possibly to make the close-up as sharp and focused as possible) while the latter towards the impressionistic. This tendency also shows in Caillebotte's other works.