Musée d'Orsay

The museum originally a railway station until 1939 is the home to French art that shows mostly Impressionism, Realism, and Post- impressionism. There are sculptures housed there as well, but it is mainly known for showcasing artist such as Van Gogh, Gauguin, Manet, Monet, and Degas, to name a few. It became a museum and historic site in 1986. 

Chaumes de Cordeville à Auvers-sur-Oise

Vincent Van Gogh (1853-1890), a Dutch master- artist, is still known as one of the most unique and important artistic figures in post- impressionism. Van Gogh was said to have been talented in art from his early years, but was not focused on becoming an artist himself. I was shocked to learn (because of his mental state) that he in fact was interested in becoming a minister, following after his father. But through a series of events he found his way to art, but not very successfully in his time period; which may help explain his decaying mental state. He was influenced by Japanese art that was introduced during the impressionist time, but still was able to make his work into something that was ahead of his time. He was known for his mental illness though more than his work during his life. Of course the famous story of him cutting his ear off, shooting himself, and many other episodes occurred that proved just how ill Van Gogh really was. This particular piece that I am taking my selfie with was done in his final weeks of his life. I have seen many Van Gogh's before (in books and now in person) and have always wondered about his method of swirling his figures and structures. I wonder now though, if that had more to do with his mental state than the subject of the painting? Or if the subject that is painted represents something in his mind that is skewed? This piece caught my eye because of those questions running through my head. I may be putting too much thought into the painting, but when I saw the painting it just made me wonder about the place being depicted and what was the story behind it.

 

Femme à l’ombrelle

  Paul Signac (1863-1935) as most other great artist was not initially training to become a painter, but instead an architect. He was first influenced by impressionist artist Claude Monet, then he later became greatly influenced by George Seurat and his technique of studying the science behind color and perception. Seurat and Signac are the leaders of the pointillism movement in art, where they applied small strokes or dots of paint that formed together to create an image; pointillism is also known as neo-impressionism. The movement started around 1886 and it was based on the artists eye, and the viewer's eye from a distant. This painting that I choose, although not considered his most famous pieces, it still shows his craft of being able to create an image from a mass of colors and dots. The model, Berthe Roblès, was his wife, and although the model herself was not the important factor, the use of shadows and light to add depth to her physical features is a distinguishable. His emphasis on the details of her clothes is also an element to the piece that adds to the complexity of pointillism itself.

Manet, Édouard 

 Monet, Claude