Collections: European Art: The Seine and the Railroad Bridge at Argenteuil (La Seine et le pont du chemin de fer d'Argenteuil)

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The Seine and the Railroad Bridge at Argenteuil (La Seine et le pont du chemin de fer d'Argenteuil)

Caillebotte’s unfinished painting of the railroad bridge that carried urbanites to and from central Paris demonstrates his Impressionist technique. The painter articulates the strict geometries of the bridge’s concrete piers and iron trestles with highly individualized brushstrokes. Most notably, Caillebotte defines the edges of the muscular columns with unpainted portions of canvas rather than with a drawn contour. Within a broad horizontal canvas, he offers a plunging perspective with a distant train approaching the span.


• Artist: Gustave Caillebotte, French, 1848-1894
• Medium: Oil on canvas
• Place Made: France
• Dates: 1885 or 1887
• Dimensions: 45 1/2 x 61 in. (115.6 x 154.9 cm) Frame: 53 5/8 x 69 3/4 x 2 1/2 in. (136.2 x 177.2 x 6.4 cm)
• Markings: Stamped lower left: "G. Caillebotte." Verso, stencil: "60 Bould. Malesherbes, Paris/ Dubus / Couleurs Fines...Peindre... / Rentoilage & Restauration / de Tableaux"
• Collections: European Art
• Museum Location: This item is not on view
• Accession Number: 1999.76.1
• Credit Line: Gift of The Arthur M. Sackler Foundation
• Image: Overall, 1999.76.1_PS1.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph, 2006
Gustave Caillebotte (French, 1848-1894). The Seine and the Railroad Bridge at Argenteuil (La Seine et le pont du chemin de fer d'Argenteuil), 1885 or 1887. Oil on canvas, 45 1/2 x 61 in. (115.6 x 154.9 cm) Frame: 53 5/8 x 69 3/4 x 2 1/2 in. (136.2 x 177.2 x 6.4 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of The Arthur M. Sackler Foundation, 1999.76.1 (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 1999.76.1_PS1.jpg)