Frederic Bazille, 9 Rue de la Condamine,1870

   
A failed doctor, Frederic Bazille joined the Impressionists as their token rich boy, befriending each of his fellow artists on quite intimate levels. Exemplified by bright colors, nudity, and lots of men, Bazille’s work is distinct from his friends’ work. Here, he pays homage to their pieces in The Artist’s Studio, 9 Rue de la Condamine.

In the middle stands Bazille, Manet, and Monet chatting in front of a window while Émile Zola stands on the stairs chatting with Renoir while Edmond Maitre, a prominent journalist, plays the piano. On the walls rest many of these artists’ pieces, enlarged so that the space stretches much farther than it really would in person. Bazille does this as a sort of optical illusion to mimic the favorite Impressionist way to paint: en plein air. Doing this, he invokes nature and light into what really may have been a small, stuffy room, instead making it a grand space for artists of many mediums to rendezvous.

This piece is a great compilation of his and his friends’ works. Bazille created this after only starting painting three years prior, so his technique is even more admirable. Having learned bits and pieces of the trade from his friends, especially Monet and Renoir, Bazille has been widely praised as the “Lost Impressionist.” I enjoy this piece because of the massive attention to detail he presents in his own works hanging on the walls. Discipline and practice really show in a manner where he is able to stretch the walls and transform the room while still maintaining natural proportions. Not very far after this piece was finished, the Franco-Prussian war broke out and Bazille was killed in the very first battle, shot in the stomach. It’s a shame to wonder what other great works may have come from him if he had lived past the war.