14.7.14

Gustave Caillebotte

























I already posted about Gustave Caillebotte, when an exhibition took place at the Jacquemart-André museum in 2011 (see here). However, after a visit at another, at present ongoing, exhibition of some his works, I thought I must talk about him again.

You may realise that for once the top picture is not one of my own photos. What I show is one of Caillebotte’s most famous paintings, “Les raboteurs de parquet” (The floor planers), quite controversial for its time, in 1875, with its realistic subject.

Gustave Caillebotte was only 45 when he died in 1894. He was one of the impressionists, although often painting in a more realistic style. He participated in the second impressionist exhibition in 1876, but he was more particularly a good and generous friend to the others in the group. Contrary to most of the other members, he was born in an upper-class family and he regularly helped the others economically, buying their paintings…. In my previous post about him I referred to the fact that in his will he donated 68 impressionist paintings, including some of the today most famous ones, to the French government - Renoir being the executor. The impressionists were not yet in fashion and more or less half of the collection was, even after several attempts, refused - today partly in private collections, partly just lost! 

The Caillebotte family owned and lived in a house at 77 rue Miromesnil (still there) ….  

… and had also a fabulous country house at Yerres, south-east of Paris. This is where the present exhibition (until July 20) takes place.  Here are some pictures from the buildings and the large beautiful park on the banks of the River Yerres. 




The paintings exhibited at Yerres are mostly related to what Caillebotte painted there. I have compared some of these paintings with my photos. 






Some additional paintings from Yerres. 

The parents died, the Yerres property was sold and Gustave and his brother (see more about him in the previous post) moved to a flat, which according to my findings must be this one, in a building at present occupied by Galeries Lafayette, close to Opera Garnier. We can see some of the paintings which obviously partly have been made here with views from and on the balconies of this flat. 

I checked on the location where Caillebotte made some of his other Paris paintings. I was surprised to see the location of this famous one, Place de Dublin (in 1877 with the name Carrefour de Moscou), in easy walking distance from where I live. The place has changed atmosphere since. 


It was more difficult to find the right angle of these paintings from the Place de l’Europe, a bridge over the Gare Saint Lazare rail tracks, and the protecting fences have changed.  

This one must have been painted from a top floor of another Galeries Lafayette building, nowadays with an “H&M” shop on the ground floors. 


When his brother married, Gustave moved definitely to a property bought at Petit Gennevilliers, today an industrial area north of Paris, but then a nice place at the countryside, on the Seine River, where Gustave could enjoy some of his favourite activities, sailing, and receive his friends. Among the paintings here we can recognise a portrait of Madame Renoir.


18 comments:

Anonymous said...


¡Que belleza sus pinturas!
¡Me fascinan!

I remember one of his paintings that I like so much: Some beautiful and fashionable young ladies on the railings of a "vapor"

As a child, I used to love going down the river in them towards Buenos Aires.

Among the wealthy impressionists were Degas, Manet, Morisot and that Pennsylvania heiress Mary Cassatt.

Thank you so much for those fantastic photos.
What a beauty of an article!

Maria

Amanda said...

I love this post. Thank you so much Peter!

Studio at the Farm said...

Now you have me intrigued!!! The family estate was gorgeous. And I love how you have tracked his paintings to sites where r he was likely to have set up his easel. Fantastic post, Peter - thank you!!!
Kathryn

rosienanjirowe said...

I enjoyed your post peter ... Great to match the paintings to locations .... Yerres was certainly worth a day out
I'm wondering if he painted in London
Thank you Rosie

JudyMac said...

In the eye of someone who loves Impressionist art, this is a beautiful post, Peter. Amazing how you get to just the right location to match both the old and present view of the same site. Kinda like putting together a puzzle by way of a lot of time and legwork. Great job!

Jeanie said...

This might be one of my favorite posts, Peter. Not just because of my love of the artist and his works, but because of your look at the environment those works featured as it is now. Place du Dublin is one that I've seen several times "in person" -- it is a favorite, so that one was especially fun to see! Thanks once again for sharing such terrific photos with great detail and interesting info!

Catherine said...

wonderful to see such a wide range of his work and set against your miden day posts - I only really knew the first painting so thanks fir such a wonderful well researched post!

claude said...

Je suis impressionnée par ton post mais Callebotte n'est pas mon impressionniste préféré. Ses oeuvres me bottent moins que celles de Renoir ou Monet.

claude said...

J'ai oublié : je suis bien contente du nouveau zoo de Vincennes. Il fut tout mon enfance.

Sara @ Simply Sara Travel said...

This is such a wonderful post! I really loved the comparison you made between Caillebotte's paintings and present-day Paris (and all the investigative work that went into that!). I have a friend who recently went to Yerres and was telling me it's more enjoyable than going to Monet's house and gardens as it's much less crowded. Your post is inspiring me to make a trip out there!

Tilia said...

Excellentes ! vos photos d'aujourd'hui à côté des tableaux d'hier, Peter.
Claude Monet aussi aimait bien Caillebotte. "Place de l'Europe par temps de pluie" et "La leçon de piano" faisaient partie de sa collection personnelle qu'il gardait dans sa chambre à coucher.

Andy Carr said...

Caillebotte, Degas, Ingres, & Napoleon Bonaparte: The Family Connections & Genealogy.

Part 1.

Gustave Caillebotte was a 3rd cousin to Paul de Launay (my grandfather) and Paul Valpinçon. The latter two (the two Pauls) were 2nd cousins to each other. Paul Valpinçon was the lifelong friend of Edgar Degas mentioned in your art history books, and it was through Valpinçon whom Degas was introduced to Caillebotte...and thus began the era of French Impressionism.

178 km west of Paris, on a vast and grand French estate in Normandie that remained in our family for 152 years, next to the Chateau there is an art studio that my cousin, Paul Valpinçon, built for his lifelong dear friend, Edgar Degas. It was built with a large window so that Degas could paint during inclement weather. This was the vast estate of the Valpinçon family chateau (French castle), and originally spanned over 250 acres. The property was originally purchased by René Valpinçon (Paul de Launay's grand uncle), in 1822, and it remained in our family until 1974. The current owner was very instrumental in having the estate designated a French historical landmark just a couple of years ago.

Paul de Launay's paternal grandmother was Marie Valpinçon, sister of René Valpinçon.

Today this estate is about half of its original size, as each time it is sold, French law allows farmers to buy the acreage they are renting to farm. Other physical changes are a water fountain in the front of the main house, and a metal Russian coat of arms of a recent owner is now bolted over the original Valpinçon coat of arms which are over both the back and main entrances.

Both Paul & Marguerite Valpinçon died on the estate, Paul on 13 Oct 1894, and Marguerite on 7 Oct 1898. The chateau passed to Paul Valpinçon's son Henri, who never married. Although Paul Valpinçon's daughter, Hortense, was alive and well when Henri died on 28 Oct 1942, the chateau passed to a male cousin, a grandson of Paul Valpinçon's brother, as was the French custom. Hortense's only son, Raymond Paul Édouard Fourchy, had already died prematurely on 7 Dec 1937, at the age of 48.

Paul Valpinçon, his wife Marguerite, and their children, Henri and Hortense, were all painted and/or drawn by Degas. There are also several paintings of the interior of the chateau by Degas. Degas remained a close friend of the Valpinçon family, especially Hortense until his death on 27 Sep 1917.

Renoir painted the children of Martial Caillebotte (Jr. - not really a Jr., but you can think of him that way), who was the younger brother of Gustave. Caillebotte himself painted his younger brothers, mother, several 1st cousins, and Mlle Boissière (located at the Houston MFA) who was a woman on Alfred's mother's side of the family.

Alfred's mother, Adèle Zoé Boissière) Caillebotte, was my great-grandfather's 1st cousin, while Martial Caillebotte, the father, was his 2nd cousin.

First cousins share the same grandparents, 2nd cousins share the same great-grandparents, 3rd cousins share the same great-great grandparents, and so on. While I have some 1st and 2nd cousins in my fathers side that we rarely communicate with, our family still remains closely connected with our Valpinçon and Caillebotte cousins who are now 4th and 5th cousins.

Part 2 continued in the next Post due to limits of this site.

Andy Carr said...

Caillebotte, Degas, Ingres, & Napoleon Bonaparte: The Family Connections & Genealogy.

Part 2

The 1808 painting by Jean Auguste Dominic Ingres, titled "The Valpinçon Bather" was a gift of neo-classical painter, Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres to René Valpinçon. Although the woman in the painting is not a Valpinçon family member to our knowledge, the painting was given the Valpinçon family name at some point we have yet to determine, and it stayed in the family until 1879 when it went to the Louvre where it resides today. It was also through the Valpinçon family that both Degas & Caillebotte met their idol, Ingres.

Paul Valpinçon and Gustave Caillebotte (along with my grandfather, Paul de Launay) were close cousins who lived just three blocks from each other in Paris, and was the relationship through which Caillebotte also met Edgar Degas, and became involved with the French Impressionist movement.

A nephew of René Valpinçon and his sister Marie was Jules Valpinçon, who became the son-in-law of Martin Guillaume Biennais. Biennais was the jeweler who crafted the Crown Jewels for the coronation of Napoleon Bonaparte in 1804, and they are also in the Louvre.

This same Jules Valpinçon is also the namesake of my great-grandfather, Jules de Launay (1813-1892), and is listed as godfather on Jules de Launay's baptismal record (1813), along with Jules' maternal aunt, Anne (neé Valpinçon) Boissiére. Anne was the mother of Martial Caillebotte's first wife, Adèle Zoé Boissière. Anne is Paul de Launay's grand aunt, and she is the sister of René & Marie Valpinçon . Zoé's son, Alfred Caillebotte, was a Catholic priest and half-brother of French Impressionist artist Gustave Caillebotte, having different mothers.

This makes Anne 1) the grand aunt of Paul Valpinçon (lifelong friend of Degas), 2) the grandmother of Alfred Callebotte (half-brother of Gustave), and 3) 1st cousin of Martial (the father) Caillebotte's mother, Adelaïde Françoise Féron.

Upon the death of Paul de Launay's father, Dr. Jules de Launay on 27 Mar 1892, Alfred Caillebotte offered to make the sons of Annie de Launay (Paul & Gaston de Launay, both Protestants) the sole heirs to Alfred's estate if only the boys would be raised in the Catholic Church. Annie refused. Alfred died 17 May 1896.

Part 3 continued in next post.

Andy Carr said...

Caillebotte, Degas, Ingres, & Napoleon Bonaparte: The Family Connections & Genealogy.

Part 2

The 1808 painting by Jean Auguste Dominic Ingres, titled "The Valpinçon Bather" was a gift of neo-classical painter, Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres to René Valpinçon. Although the woman in the painting is not a Valpinçon family member to our knowledge, the painting was given the Valpinçon family name at some point we have yet to determine, and it stayed in the family until 1879 when it went to the Louvre where it resides today. It was also through the Valpinçon family that both Degas & Caillebotte met their idol, Ingres.

Paul Valpinçon and Gustave Caillebotte (along with my grandfather, Paul de Launay) were close cousins who lived just three blocks from each other in Paris, and was the relationship through which Caillebotte also met Edgar Degas, and became involved with the French Impressionist movement.

A nephew of René Valpinçon and his sister Marie was Jules Valpinçon, who became the son-in-law of Martin Guillaume Biennais. Biennais was the jeweler who crafted the Crown Jewels for the coronation of Napoleon Bonaparte in 1804, and they are also in the Louvre.

This same Jules Valpinçon is also the namesake of my great-grandfather, Jules de Launay (1813-1892), and is listed as godfather on Jules de Launay's baptismal record (1813), along with Jules' maternal aunt, Anne (neé Valpinçon) Boissiére. Anne was the mother of Martial Caillebotte's first wife, Adèle Zoé Boissière. Anne is Paul de Launay's grand aunt, and she is the sister of René & Marie Valpinçon . Zoé's son, Alfred Caillebotte, was a Catholic priest and half-brother of French Impressionist artist Gustave Caillebotte, having different mothers.

This makes Anne 1) the grand aunt of Paul Valpinçon (lifelong friend of Degas), 2) the grandmother of Alfred Callebotte (half-brother of Gustave), and 3) 1st cousin of Martial (the father) Caillebotte's mother, Adelaïde Françoise Féron.

Upon the death of Paul de Launay's father, Dr. Jules de Launay on 27 Mar 1892, Alfred Caillebotte offered to make the sons of Annie de Launay (Paul & Gaston de Launay, both Protestants) the sole heirs to Alfred's estate if only the boys would be raised in the Catholic Church. Annie refused. Alfred died 17 May 1896.

Part 3 continued in next post.

Andy Carr said...

Caillebotte, Degas, Ingres, & Napoleon Bonaparte: The Family Connections & Genealogy.

Part 3.

When the wife of Martin Guillaume Biennais, Madame Biennais died in 1869, her chateau in Yerres was purchased by Martial Caillebotte (father of Gustave) in a private family auction. Martial's 2nd cousin, Jules Valpinçon (mentioned above) was married to one of the daughters of Biennais. This property in Yerres is the same property where Gustave Caillebotte painted his first known paintings. So, the sale of this 27 acre estate was literally a sale between cousins.

My grandfather, Paul de Launay (1878-1951), was an artist, sculture, and organist trained in Paris, who was also a student of Léon Bonnat. Bonnat was a very famous French artist, and one of Caillebotte's first teachers. Paul de Launay came to the U.S. in 1903 and became one of the top organists in the country, and a lesser known artist than his famous cousin, but was finally awarded the French Légion d'honneur in 1950, just before his death in 1951.

On our Facebook page, linked below, I have posted a photo of Alfred Caillebotte, who was as you may have guessed by now, was both a 3rd cousin AND a half-brother to Gustave. Alfred's parents were indeed 2nd cousins to each other and were married on 16 Jan 1810 in Paris. Alfred's mother was the first wife of Martial Caillebotte, and she died 12 Dec 1836, just four days after their daughter, Leonie (age 6) died.

Martial Caillebotte married his 2nd wife, Eugénie Séraphine Lemasquerier, in 1843. She died 12 Jan 1844, 6 days after giving birth to their son, Max, who died the day he was born.

Martial's 3rd wife was Gustave's mother, Cèleste Daufresne, and they married on 21 Oct 1847. Cèleste was also the niece of the 2nd wife of Martial Caillebotte, but only 5 years younger. All of the wives and children, and some grandchildren, are buried in the Caillebotte Tomb at Pére Lachaise.

The Caillebotte, Valpinçon, and de Launay descendants (some American), now 4th, 5th, and 6th cousins, who all maintain very close family ties with each other and still frequently gather as a family in Paris, and Normandie.

Our French family historical blog with much more detail and many more stories can be found at

http://MyFamilyJules.com

and on FB at

http://Facebook.com/GustaveCaillebotte

martinealison said...

Bonjour cher Peter,

Un complément de billet sur Caillebotte très intéressant...
Voilà ce que c'est que d'avoir la chance de vivre à Paris... tu peux tout voir !
J'aime beaucoup ses oeuvres.
Les photos de la propriété de Yerres sont sublimes.
Très beau et immense travail pour réunir d'aussi belles photos et documents.
merci pour ce délicieux partage.

Gros bisous à toi.

obat pelangsing yang aman said...

just blogwalking.. Nice post and have a nice day :)

richard said...

That's a great post Peter