Portrait de Juliette Courbet

Gustave Courbet's 1873 portrait of his sister Juliette was painted during his Swiss exile following the Paris Commune and the destruction of the Vendôme Column, for which he was held responsible. Exiled, financially ruined, and emotionally exhausted, Courbet nonetheless continued painting with extraordinary productivity in Switzerland, producing landscapes, seascapes, and portraits. A portrait of his sister during this period carries a particular emotional weight — Juliette was a faithful correspondent and supporter throughout his exile. The São Paulo Museum of Art's holding of this work places an important Courbet in South America's most significant art collection.

Courbet paints his sister with the direct, unidealized realism that characterized all his portraiture, combined with a warmth of feeling appropriate to a family portrait. His palette knife technique, characteristic of his mature work, gives the paint surface a rich, material quality.