The Meeting, or Bonjour, Monsieur Courbet!

Painted in 1854 and now in the Musée Fabre, Montpellier, this large outdoor encounter scene depicts Courbet himself meeting his patron Alfred Bruyas on the road outside Montpellier, accompanied by their servants. The painting's informal title — 'Bonjour Monsieur Courbet!' — records the greeting that triggered the composition, and the power dynamic of the scene is carefully observed: Bruyas and his servant bow slightly to greet the artist, who stands upright with walking stick and pack, entirely self-possessed. Courbet's self-presentation as an itinerant artist equal in social dignity to any patron was a deliberate assertion of the artist's independence. The Musée Fabre, founded by Bruyas's own collection, holds this work as one of its defining masterpieces.

The outdoor figure group required consistent plein-air lighting — strong Mediterranean sunlight from above and to one side — which Courbet managed with careful observation of cast shadows and the different optical behavior of white shirt, dark coat, and the landscape behind. The three figures are arranged in a loose diagonal recession into the picture plane.