After inheriting a family fortune in 1874, Caillebotte set about teaching himself painting primarily in the Realist manner. In that year he also befriended Edgar Degas. The present picture recalls his initial interest in the most celebrated landscape painter of the day, Camille Corot. Caillebotte made his debut in the second Impressionist exhibition in 1876, showing eight paintings. His late works exhibit the strong influence of Impressionism. Mia’s Nude on a Couch is arguably his masterwork in that later style.
Text: Minneapolis Institute of Art (Mia), CC BY 4.0.
