The Seine and the Railroad Bridge at Argenteuil (La Seine et le pont du chemin de fer d'Argenteuil)
Brooklyn Museum photograph
Object Label
For Gustave Caillebotte the suburban town of Argenteuil was an ideal modern landscape, where nature, industry, and leisure coexisted. Here, in sweeping brushwork, the artist depicts one of the most significant nineteenth-century symbols of modernity—the steam train—about to cross the concrete and iron railroad bridge spanning the Seine. The cropped edges of his composition and its dramatic perspective suggest the influence of photography on his work.
Independently wealthy, Caillebotte was a key source of financial support for many of his fellow painters, notably Claude Monet and Camille Pissarro.
Caption
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 × 61 in., 70 lb. (115.6 × 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. No known copyright restrictions (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 1999.76.1_colorcorrected_SL1.jpg)
Tags
Gallery
Not on view
Collection
Gallery
Not on view
Collection
Artist
Title
The Seine and the Railroad Bridge at Argenteuil (La Seine et le pont du chemin de fer d'Argenteuil)
Date
1885 or 1887
Geography
Place made: France
Medium
Oil on canvas
Classification
Dimensions
45 1/2 × 61 in., 70 lb. (115.6 × 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"
Credit Line
Gift of The Arthur M. Sackler Foundation
Accession Number
1999.76.1
Rights
No known copyright restrictions
This work may be in the public domain in the United States. Works created by United States and non-United States nationals published prior to 1923 are in the public domain, subject to the terms of any applicable treaty or agreement. You may download and use Brooklyn Museum images of this work. Please include caption information from this page and credit the Brooklyn Museum. If you need a high resolution file, please fill out our online application form (charges apply). The Museum does not warrant that the use of this work will not infringe on the rights of third parties, such as artists or artists' heirs holding the rights to the work. It is your responsibility to determine and satisfy copyright or other use restrictions before copying, transmitting, or making other use of protected items beyond that allowed by "fair use," as such term is understood under the United States Copyright Act. The Brooklyn Museum makes no representations or warranties with respect to the application or terms of any international agreement governing copyright protection in the United States for works created by foreign nationals. For further information about copyright, we recommend resources at the United States Library of Congress, Cornell University, Copyright and Cultural Institutions: Guidelines for U.S. Libraries, Archives, and Museums, and Copyright Watch. For more information about the Museum's rights project, including how rights types are assigned, please see our blog posts on copyright. If you have any information regarding this work and rights to it, please contact copyright@brooklynmuseum.org.
Frequent Art Questions
I see a lot of canvas. Is this incomplete?
Interesting question. There is definitely some canvas showing through, but this work is not considered incomplete.Impressionists and Post-Impressionists sometimes utilized the bare canvas as part of the composition. This technique is apparent in other works by Caillebotte.This Caillebotte differs so much from others I’ve seen (like Paris Street Rainy Day, or the dudes carving his floors), what accounts for the stylistic change?
This painting comes from a later period in his career, when Caillebotte was spending more time painting scenes in the countryside, along the Normandy coast and the Seine.Like the painting of men planing his floor, Caillebotte is focusing on everyday, Realist subjects. In this case, a recently built industrial bridge.To what extent was Caibotte considered successful in his own right in his life time?
Caillebotte was born into a wealthy family, so he didn't worry too much about selling a lot of work. He even financially supported his artist friends and collected their works.That said, he was invited by Degas to participate in the First Impressionist Exhibition in 1874 (though he declined to participate), and his work was reviewed favorably by critics at the time.Thanks, so a modest success?It would seem so, yes!Gustave Caillebotte, why did he chose to leave blank space of canvas showing?
His concern in this painting was primarily with capturing the feeling of the place at that moment. This was likely just a stylistic choice on his part to enhance the feel of the scene, and it's light and color.ThanksPlease tell me more about this artwork.
Of course! Gustave Caillebotte rose to prominence with the Impressionist circle in Paris in the 1870s. This painting comes from a period after the dismantling of the Impressionists, when he was spending his time painting scenes along the Normandy coast and images of the Seine.This subject was of particular interest for Impressionists, as it captures a locale where nature and modernity meet. Monet painted it as well!
Have information?
Have information about an artwork? Contact us at