Art Review - "Les dahlias, jardin du Petit Gennevilliers" by Gustave Caillebotte

This week's #MuseumTourTuesday features a piece by French painter Gustave Caillebotte at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. I was immediately struck by the tension between the foreground floral and the house beyond. They compete for dominance, and yet I feel that the dahlias ultimately win out due to all of the subtleties within the leaves and flowers. Even so, the lines of the path and the greenhouse connect the two areas of the painting and keep the eyes exploring the entire composition.

It's interesting to note that this is a study for a slightly larger painting at the National Gallery of Art. The other painting adds in a figure and dog along the path, and I find that this addition makes the composition a bit overwhelming.

Born in 1848, Caillebotte was an attorney and an engineer. His sizable allowance and a family inheritance allowed him to paint without any pressure to sell his work - the dream of all artists. He supported his fellow artists by funding impressionist exhibitions and purchasing their works. He even covered the rent for Monet's studio. Due to his strong patronage of the arts, Caillebotte himself was not recognized as a significant painter until the 1960s.

"Les dahlias, jardin du Petit Gennevilliers" • Gustave Caillebotte 

• Oil on Canvas • 45.5" x 34.8" • 1893

Painting photo by Saunders Fine Arts.

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