Gustave Caillebotte [Hardcover]

Dr. Kirk Varnedoe (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 10, 1987

A study of the life and work of Gustave Caillebotte - until recently the "forgotten man" of Impressionism.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Caillebotte's wealth and youthfulness (he was 14 years younger than Degas) set him apart from the other French impressionists. A patron and publicist of the impressionist movement as well as a painter himself, he has been sorely neglected until recently. His pictures show us the world's sheer randomness as well as its patterns of order. Like Munch and Van Gogh, Caillebotte manipulated perspective to produce overwrought sensations of depth. He captured the boulevard's chaotic variety and the depersonalization of the modern city. His tautly focused realism, wide-angled spaces and cooly detached viewpoint upset his contemporaries, yet in today's cinematic culture his paintings resonate with familiarity. This superbly illustrated study by a New York University art professor does full justice, in text and pictures, to the "forgotten Impressionist."
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

This 1987 volume by Varnedoe, the curator of New York's Museum of Modern Art, offered one of the first collections of Impressionism's Caillebotte, who until recently remained an obscure figure, being overshadowed by Monet, Van Gogh, and the usual suspects. The text includes 200 monochrome and 72 color illustrations. A beauty for the price.
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 220 pages
• Publisher: Yale University Press; First edition (September 10, 1987)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0300037228
• ISBN-13: 978-0300037227
• Product Dimensions: 11.1 x 9.8 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,013,735 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

46 of 47 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A comprehensive, balanced view of Caillebotte's work., September 26, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Gustave Caillebotte (Hardcover)

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.

10 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Gustave Caillebotte-By Kirk Varnedoe, May 11, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Gustave Caillebotte (Paperback)

My favorite artist - in a classy book. What a wonderful way to get to know a little bit more about him and enjoy his art! This book is worth the price and more!