Paris Street; Rainy Day

Rue de Paris. Temps de pluie / 1877

Gustave Caillebotte

Gustave Caillebotte, Paris Street; Rainy Day (1877) — Photo via Wikimedia Commons, cropped and edited / Public Domain

This preparatory study for the famous painting now in the Art Institute of Chicago was gifted by Caillebotte to Claude Monet. Capturing the intersection of Rue de Turin and Rue de Moscou in Haussmann’s "New Paris," the sketch features a freer and less smooth style than the final version. The composition is divided by a lamppost, with a couple under a large umbrella on the right, utilizing cold tones and strong perspective to reflect Caillebotte’s modernity. This cherished work remained in Monet's bedroom until his death.