Gustave Caillebottes Paris Street; Rainy Day Essay -- Paris sous la P

Gustave Caillebottes Paris Street Rainy dayThe first thing that strikes me is the size of the work. About sevenfeet tall and nine feet wide, this painting dominates its gallery andoverwhelms the viewer. The duo in the foreground of the painting isnearly life size, and with the man poised to take another step itseems he might climb right over the frame and walk right into thegallery. The bold perspective thrusts the scene outward, and withdetails such as the sharply pull away roofline of the main building andthe acute tilt of the street, geometric and visual effects are createdwhich push and pull the viewer and instill the painting with action.This work is more than complex and detailed then one might first imagine,and with such a rich surface and vast array of minutiae it trulyrequires an in mortal viewing for full comprehension.Painted in 1877 by the wealthy painter/impressionist connoisseurGustave Caillebotte, Paris, A Rainy Day is a depiction of a familiarfive-way intersectio n in a wealthy area of Paris near the artistshome on a rainy and overcast day. A swarm of characters are dispersedthroughout the canvas, strolling about and engaging in usual dailyactivities. The expansive street and uniform architecture, common inParis after(prenominal) Haussmanns renovations, are accentuated, and in many waysthe work is a verisitic snapshot of modern everyday life.In the foreground a well to do couple with interlocked arms and ashared umbrella walks towards the viewer. By noting the angle ofreflections from the lamppost and other figures it seems as if thepainter is taking his view from directly in front of these persons,and cosmos the most prominent figures they certainly warrant a moredetailed discussion. The man gazes to his right. His eyes are a softgrayish hue and he walks assertively. The gaze on his face isdifficult to read perhaps he is longing or being contemplative, inany event he seems detached. It seems credible to label him theprotagonist. The wom an tilts her head as well, and is most likelyobserving the same object or event as her companion. Observed close upshe appears to have an emergent smile on her comely face. The dots onher veil, a dazzlingly white earring (likely a diamond) and an azureblue tuft of cloth marked at her neckline are particularlystriking, and provide vibrancy... ...e men from the titleof flaneur. In the expression on their faces it almost seems as ifthere is some yearning for anterior times.Because this painting is a modern cityscape it is ipso facto apainting of modernity (one thinks of Baudelair) and a record of thefashions of 1877. By recording the actual events of his own time,Caillebotte was part of a moderately radical new type of painting. Hisfigures are shown accurately in contemporary dress, and he hasessentially taken a mundane and fleeting moment and captured it evermore on a monumental scale. Celebrating modernity, whilesimultaneously casting a critical eye, is one of the signaturehallma rks of impressionism and inchoate modern art.Paris, A Rainy Day is a complex work of both technical virtuosity andimplied thematic elements which synthesize to engross the viewervisually and entice them mentally to think about urban life andfeelings of alienation. The painting conflates multiple issues whichsurround and form the foundation of the art historical study of theImpressionists Paris, and remains in its grandeur as a historicalvisual document, a commentary on urban life, and a testament tomodernity.