Paris in July: French Impressionism from the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston Exhibition

One of the things that I really wanted to do for Paris in July was to visit the current Winter Masterpieces exhibition at the National Gallery of Victoria which is French Impressionism from the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. It was beginning to look like we were going to run out of time and have to do it either in August or September but we managed to squeeze it in on Saturday. 

This exhibition was originally on display at the NGV back in 2021 but the event was cut short when Victoria was plunged into lockdown for extended periods in that year. It has taken another four years for it to come back again but it was definitely worth seeing again. We did go back in 2021, and I posted about it as part of Paris in July 2021. It is interesting to see how differently it was staged, and how different things caught my eye this time, and how some of the same things caught my eye. For example, there is a whole room of still life paintings and there is a quote from Cezanne about why he preferred to paint fruit instead of flowers in still life paintings

As to flowers, I have given them up. They wilt immediately. Fruits are more reliable.They love having their portraits done.

It made smile both times!

This is the description of the exhibition from the NGV website

French Impressionism is a major exhibition developed by the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, in partnership with the National Gallery of Victoria. The exhibition charts the trajectory of Impressionism and Post-Impressionism in late nineteenth-century France, highlighting the renowned avant-garde artists at the centre of this period of radical experimentation, who boldly rejected the artistic conventions of their time.

Drawn from MFA Boston’s rich collection of Impressionist masterworks, French Impressionism presents more than 100 paintings by key figures including Claude Monet, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Edgar Degas, Camille Pissarro, Édouard Manet, Mary Cassatt, Berthe Morisot, Paul Signac and Alfred Sisley. Audiences have the opportunity to experience the hallmarks of Impressionism: distinctive brushwork, vivid use of colour, innovative viewpoints, and depictions of subjects and places dear to the artists. The exhibition’s scenography draws inspiration from the grand nineteenth-century residences of East Coast American collectors – where works such as these would have been displayed – as well as some of the spaces beloved by the artists themselves.

Through ten thematic sections, French Impressionism evokes the artistic energy and intellectual dynamism of the period by placing emphasis on the thoughts and observations of the artists themselves. Their words, as recorded in letters, journals and articles, reveal the mutual admiration and personal connections that united the practitioners at the centre of this avant-garde movement.

I thought that I would share a few photos from the exhibition today. There are so many more that I could share but I picked a few that I found interesting for various reasons 

I really liked the way that this picture turned out. 

This is a painting by Paul Huet which shows different scenes from the forest at Compiegne. I talked briefly about the historical significance of Compiegne in the 20th century when I reviewed the book The Mysterious Bakery at Rue de Paris earlier this month!

I was super excited to see this self portrait by Victorine Meurent as part of the exhibition. The search for her in the history books and the finding of her lost painting was a big part of the book The Paris Novel which I read for this year's event. (my review)

I couldn't not include one of the many Renoir's that was on display as part of the exhibition. This painting was the focal point of one of the most ornate rooms. 

This is a Degas painting called Visit to a museum and the description talked about this being his friend Mary Cassatt and probably her sister visiting a museum. The plaque says "Their attitudes suggest interest but also exhaustion brought on by a long day at the museum". I swear I saw people with similar attitudes on display while we were walking around. 

I really enjoyed this exhibition, and I especially loved the ways that all the rooms are laid out. This is something that they seem to be doing better and better with each exhibition. In this case, you entered through a long corridor which had a mirror at either end so it looked like it went forever, and then you moved through a series of rooms which each had been decorated in it's own particular style.  In some of the rooms there what appeared to be antique rugs and period furniture. In other rooms there were ornate parquet floors. Hopefully this collage gives you an idea. 

After the exhibition we went for high tea afterwards in the Tea Rooms at the NGV. It's a place I have loved visiting for years now but I have never had high tea there before. It was really, really delicious. I will post more about that in a couple of weeks time, but in the mean time, here's one of the plates that we had. 

And so we come to the end of another Paris in July. I will have a round up post with all the links a bit later today.