The Orange Trees

On this day in 1848, Gustave Caillebotte, member and patron of the Impressionists, was born. He painted in a much more realistic manner than many others in the group but shared their interests in the modern theme of refined leisure activities.

In The Orange Trees, Caillebotte's brother Martial and their young cousin Zoe, both elegantly dressed, relax in the park-like garden of the family villa at Yerres, just outside of Paris. The painting contains all the basic elements of the modern style. The sundrenched scene, with the almost palpable summer heat radiating off the garden path, was most likely painted out of doors according to the Impressionist canon. The short, sketchy brush-strokes employed by Caillebotte embody his desire to capture a fleeting moment—that instant before the light changes and the feeling of delicious quiet and repose could be disrupted.

Inspired by photography, Japanese prints, and the aesthetics of Baron Haussmann's newly constructed boulevards and uniform apartment buildings of modern Paris, Caillebotte explored a new way of seeing.

See more in the article "Gustave Caillebotte’s Urban Intimacy" in our online magazine. Enjoy!