round 2 mhmm

Blogs > geometryb

Post a Reply

geometryb

United States1249 Posts

June 09 2007 12:44 GMT

ATeddyBear

Canada2843 Posts

June 09 2007 12:54 GMT

that painting has a cool story :O

geometryb

United States1249 Posts

June 09 2007 13:05 GMT

On June 09 2007 21:54 ATeddyBear wrote:
that painting has a cool story :O

i like how you share the story...you tease

micronesia

United States24753 Posts

June 09 2007 13:20 GMT

On June 09 2007 21:44 geometryb wrote:
Caillebotte is painting a moment in everyday life. The people are all dressed in black coats and carrying umbrellas. The sky is covered in a dull and monotonous grey cloud. The figures are randomly dotted across the streets and the buildings seem empty and distant. It has a very lonely feel. Even though the city is filled with millions of people, everyone is still very isolated. Just as it is becoming more of a planned and artificial city, individuals are becoming stifled and suppressed. the painting is of an intersection, where the streets and the different parts of the city become connected. The people, on the other hand, are all so distant from each other.

Allow me to respond to your analysis. First, what led you to believe that the buildings seem 'empty and distant'? Next, what exactly about the painting gives you a sense that the people are isolated and distant from each other? More specifically, if instead the author wanted to give the opposite effect, what would he show us?

geometryb

United States1249 Posts

June 09 2007 13:41 GMT

the buildings are done with a very hazy hue of yellow and they are blackened and dirty. they all have the same facade that extends into the background. the windows are all grey and empty. spacially, they are placed very far from the front of the painting. the people are not huddled in groups, but rather they are walking alone. the space between each figure suggests that they are isolated. In the foreground, the two on the left completely ignore the presence of the third who is passing them. similarly, the other characters all have downcast eyes and are completely ignoring the rest of the people.

for the opposite effect, the artist would probably paint a sunny day with crowded streets and clean and shining buildings. maybe throw in some trees and flowers to add to the life of the city.

micronesia

United States24753 Posts

June 09 2007 14:26 GMT

If you take this painting out of context for a moment, the people are acting almost exactly as modern day people would on a rainy day. I don't hang out with random strangers in the rain when I'm walking from point A to point B. I don't say 'good day' to random passer byers for the most part. In that time/place was it especially common for people to greet one another? I just think it's going a bit too far to say the painting shows that people are distant and isolated. There are several groups of two walking in the painting, and I think it might be unfair to use the dinginess of the painting as direct evidence of the nature of interpersonal relations.

Also, when I asked you about the buildings being 'empty and distant' apparently I took 'empty' too literally and 'distant' not literally enough so I think I understand what you meant better now.

geometryb

United States1249 Posts

June 10 2007 02:00 GMT

i think it's nice that you're bringing up your personal experiences, which I feel is very important when viewing something. i don't know. sometimes when i walk around on the streets i realize how lonely the city can be. there are millions of people but none of them care about each other. like in the painting, even though two people might be walking together, it is still only a couple--there are no groups or sense of community or belonging.

i think there's a reason why Caillebotte painted with these darkened and hazy hues. even if it wasn't a conscious decision to do it that way, it doesn't change the fact that it's there or the effect it has on the viewer. i think the painting gives off a very melancholic mood and i think it does send a message about isolation and individuals and stuff.

berated-

United States1134 Posts

June 10 2007 03:14 GMT

This is a pretty sweet painting, I've actually seen this one in Chicago.

DeadVessel

United States6269 Posts

June 10 2007 12:18 GMT

the painting seems very bland and depressing, maybe it was his feeling towards napoleon's reconstruction? maybe he feels that like geo said that this time period is making people more distant?

Please or register to reply.

round 2 mhmm

Completed

Ongoing

Upcoming