Caillebotte, Gustave (1848-1894)
Portrait d’homme (Portrait of a Man)
1880
Oil on canvas, 81.3 x 65.6 cm
Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland
Among Gustave Caillebotte’s most celebrated works are his views of modern Paris seen from balconies and terraces, a theme that first appeared in his paintings of the mid-1870s. This painting depicts a middle-aged man sitting in room and looking toward a window with laced curtains. His fashionable suit and bow tie are markers of his social status as a flâneur of the urban bourgeoisie. Rather than wearing an expression of joy or delight, the sunlight raking across his face accentuates his heavily lidded eyes and sagging facial muscles, giving him a deeply contemplative expression as he gazes at the world from the comfort of his sumptuous apartment.
This portrait of Albert Courtier was painted in the fourth-floor apartment at 31 Boulevard Haussmann in Paris that Gustave Caillebotte shared with his brother Martial. The interior and balcony of this apartment provided the setting for numerous paintings of men in Caillebotte’s social circle surveying the city. Courtier’s pose and unguarded gaze suggest a comfortable rapport with the artist. Their relationship was close: Courtier posed for Caillebotte on several occasions, owned four of the artist’s paintings, and designated his friend as godfather to his eldest daughter.(CMA)
See also:
• Boulevard Haussmann (Paris) | Courtier, Albert (1844-1922)