2: A comprehensive, balanced view of Caillebotte's work.
Kirk Varnedoe gives us, in Gustave Caillebotte, not only a beautifully reproduced compendium of the artist's major works, but an unusually insightful commentary on his place in the Impressionist movement. Perhaps most importantly, he offers a vision of Caillebotte that allows us to see him as more than a "minor" impressionist, but as an original precursor of modernism who remained true to his own unique vision despite the influences of his better known contemporaries. The importance of late nineteenth century photography, and especially the new, shorter 28 mm. lenses of the period, on Caillebotte's treatment of perspective are analyzed in detail through careful consideration of the preliminary studies for "Rainy Afternoon in Paris" and "Pont de l'Europe". While the author is forthright in his views of the "unevenness" of Caillebotte's oeuvre, he makes a strong case for viewing what Varnedoe refers to as Caillebotte's "internal personal dynamic" as a driving force behind the artist's shifting styles and artistic innovations. The illustrations faithfully reproduce the palette and nuances of Caillebotte's work, still evolving at his untimely death at age 45. An important appendix catalogues the gift of Caillebotte's extraordinary personal collection of impressionist paintings to the French state. These works by Monet, Renoir, Cezanne, Pisarro and others are part of the core collection of the Musee d'Orsay, reminding us again of Caillebotte's role as not only a contributor to the impressionist movement, but as a supporter and champion of its promulgation.
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