Thursday, April 11, 2013

Impressionism, Fashion, and Modernity


Impressionism, Fashion, and Modernity

I am so sad to miss  this exhibition.  My Firm is shipping me off to NYC this summer for a week CLE (Continuing Legal Education) on drafting trusts.  Admittedly, I’m looking forward to the experience, not to speak of being in the City for a week—plus a post weekend stay for good measure.  All that to say, I won’t be shipped up until this exhibition is shipped out.  So let’s dig in and try to absorb from a distance.

Camille Monet,the painter's first wife (1847-1879). Canvas, 1866.

The exhibition Impressionism, Fashion, and Modernity  is an exploration of the interplay between modern culture, fashion, and the the painter during the 1860’s through the 1880’s.  The exhibition includes works by Renoir, Manet, Monet, Degas, Cassatt, and others—a collaboration of incredible pieces from permanent collections the world over.

impressionism_12

The narrative reminds the viewer that this period was when Haussmann was recreating the urban landscape of Paris—the oft admired rows of apartments.  These apartments stand today and beautifully line the city streets.  So interesting to understand the propriety and innovation of the period in which these paintings were created.

IMG_0468

The exhibition speaks of the shift in the focus of the portraits in this period—an acute awareness of the hem to a more attuned attention to light and shadows.  It addresses the drama displayed by those clad in white and those in black.  And, also the simplicity of the man’s dress of the day—love these paintings.  Read more about the exhibition—not too long and quite insightful.

impressionism_22impressionism_19impressionism_17RMN1238impressionism_21

Claude Monet (French, 1840–1926). Camille, 1866. Oil on canvas; 90 15/16 x 59 1/2 in. (231 x 151 cm). Kunsthalle Bremen, Der Kunstverein in Bremen; Édouard Manet (French, 1832–1883). Lady with Fans (Portrait of Nina de Callias), 1873. Oil on canvas; 44 1/2 x 65 9/16 in. (113 x 166.5 cm) Musée d'Orsay, Paris, Bequest of M. and Mme Ernest Rouart; Mary Cassatt (American, 1844–1926) In the Loge, 1878. Oil on canvas; 32 x 26 in. (81.3 x 66 cm). Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, The Hayden Collection, Charles Henry Hayden Fund;  Edgar Degas (French, 1834–1917). Portraits at the Stock Exchange, 1878–79. Oil on canvas; 39 3/8 x 32 1/4 in. (100 x 82 cm). Musée d'Orsay, Paris, Bequest subject to usufruct of Ernest May, 1923; Edgar Degas (French, 1834–1917). The Millinery Shop, ca. 1882–86. Oil on canvas; 39 3/8 x 43 5/8 in. (100 x 110.7 cm). The Art Institute of Chicago, Mr. and Mrs. Lewis Larned Coburn Memorial Collection; Gustave Caillebotte (French, 1848–1894). At the Café, 1880. Oil on canvas; 60 1/4 x 44 15/16 in. (153 x 114 cm). Musée d'Orsay, Paris, On deposit at the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Rouen

No comments:

Post a Comment