Frederic Bazille and the Birth of Impression
The title of the exhibition is Frederic Bazille and the Birth of Impression. It is located on
the mezzanine floor. It is located in the East Building at the National Gallery of Art. The dates
that it is in place are April 9, 2017 until July 9, 2017. There are three large rooms in this exhibit.
It is located in Concourse, the East Building. The Concourse contains a large auditorium,
a small auditorium, and a gallery space. The color of the walls in the museum is that of earth
colors. I see different shades of beige, grey, and white. The other artists included in this room
were Claude Monet’s work, Auguste Renoir’s work, and Paul Edmondson’s work. There are
paintings, drawings, sculptures, limestones, and painted sheet metals. When entering a room, I
see different art materials being used in this exhibit. The physical experience is one of awe. It is
amazing to see the famous artists and the ways in which they bring art to life. The groups that
organized the exhibition are the National Gallery of Art, the Museedorsay, Paris. The purpose of
the exhibition is to shed light on an underappreciated figure, Frederic Bazille. Frederic Bazille
was born on December 6, 1841. He was born in Montpellier, France. He was raised in a wealthy
family at the south of France.
He left home in 1860 to first study medicine in Paris. But, he realized his true calling, true
love, and true passion was for the arts. At first, his parents were disappointed that he left the
field of medicine. Being that he came from a wealthy family, he had a very spacious studio.
He was very generous to his fellow painters. While leaving school to pursue are, he met fellow
painters. The fellow painters that he met were Claude Monet, Pierre Auguste Renoir, and Alfred
Sisley. These three painters also helped founded the impressionist movement. He was very
generous to these fellow painters and he helped support and contribute to their success. They
were allowed to use his home as headquarters.
Some of Frederic Bazille’s works included “Summer Scene”, “Family Reunion”, “La Robe
Rose”, Atelier de la rue Furstenberg”, “Aigues-Mortes”, and “Autportrait”.
In 1870, his life was cut short. In 1870, he joined the infantry due to Franco and Prussian war
beginning. He was later sent to Algeria but then later appeared on the frontline in battle.
He died in battle in1870. Frederic Bazille was only 29 years of age. Many believed that if he
lived longer, his works would be more appreciated. This exhibit has done a great job in
shedding light on his contribution to art.
The exhibition focus is Bazille’s artistic practices. It brings together seventy four paintings and budding impressionist who were his friends. The focus is contemporary life that helped lay foundation of impressionism. Theexhibit is organized in the Grand Concourse room. The wall colors are modern nude. It has many blues and whites. The lighting is bright. The objects are displayed in a way in which it appears that objects were turning to face the picture of a camera.
The special features that enhance the goals of the exhibition are the stiff and formal
posture of the figure which shows realism and impressionism. The exhibition content is a family
reunion/ birthday celebration. The objects included in exhibition are Gaston Bazille, artist’s
father ten family members, leaves, trees, blue sky, and clouds.
The artists that are represented are Gaston Bazille, the artist father and ten family member.
one object from exhibition is clouds. A physical description is that the clouds are white and
scattered throughout. Its placement in exhibition and relationship to other objects is that the
clouds seem fixed in the blue sky. The clouds are next to the bright summer light which
brightens the clothing.
One strength of the exhibition is that this exhibition is the first major presentation
of Bazille’s work in America. It is also an outdoor figural art. I liked that it focused on color and
human candid figures. I liked how it combined traditional painting with outdoor painting. My
favorite exhibit is the family portrait or the family gathering. The painting shows a picture of
some type of family gathering. It appears to be summer. It is an oil canvass. Each person is their
own portrait. It appears that they are looking at a spectator. Their postures are stiff and still. I
like this painting because it is a beautiful painting that exhibits the outdoor life. It is an open
air painting. It features all of the members of his family. His parents are sitting on the bench.
The other people in the painting are his aunts, uncles, and cousins. The people in the picturegave the impression that they stop to pose for the photograph. I like the idea of a large paintingwith many people in it. It is very diverse. I like the outdoor/ summer setting. I liked how itshowed that even though the people are outdoors, they are sitting still. When you are outdoors,
one may think of movement. When you are inside, you think of objects being still. You may
think of people sitting still at a dining room table or on a living room couch. I liked how he
placed the people under the tree. One area is shaded while the other area is bright. The contrast is
great. This contrast enhanced the strong colors of the landscape and the sky. The clouds stand out
as well. His use of color and depiction of human figures is consider two strengths of his
paintings. I liked that his outdoor setting, which included trees, grass, sky, and clouds, helped
to capture the beautiful outdoors and nature at its best.
I do not see much weakness in the painting. I would have liked to see some movement
with the people in the painting. In this painting, I would have liked to see more human
interaction.
This exhibition enhanced my understanding of the role of art and in culture by learning
about impressionism and realism. This exhibit was an example of both. It was a realist and
impressionist style. The weakness is the lack of interaction between family members. The
objects were all stiff like they were caught off guard posing for a camera. The strength is that
even though he died lying on the battlefield, his works are still being appreciated today. The
strength is that this exhibit showed his underappreciated works. Many artists have been
influenced by his works and are still influenced by his works even
today.
The exhibition enhances my understanding of the role of art in culture in many ways.
It enhanced it by learning about impressionism and realism. This exhibit was an example
of both. It has a realist and impressionist style to it. He was known as one of the painters who
captured outdoor figural art. He helped bring together traditional figure painting with outdoor
practices. I believe that if he lived longer, he would have been destined to become one
of the greatest leaders of the impressionist revolution.