Henri Cordier
Gustave Caillebotte·1883
Historical Context
Caillebotte's portrait of Henri Cordier was painted in 1883 and depicts the French orientalist and sinologist, who was a prominent figure in Parisian intellectual life. Cordier was among Caillebotte's circle of acquaintances through the arts, and the portrait belongs to the relatively small but carefully considered body of formal portraiture Caillebotte produced outside his immediate family. By the early 1880s Caillebotte had largely retreated from the Impressionist exhibitions in favour of sailing, gardening, and more private artistic pursuits, and this portrait reflects the quieter register of his later work.
Technical Analysis
A sober palette of blacks, browns, and dark greens suits the professional dignity of the sitter, with face and hands as the focal points of warmer flesh tones. Brushwork is restrained and descriptive in the face, looser in the jacket and background.
