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The Stonebreaker
ca. 187217 1/2 x 21 1/2 in. (44.5 x 54.6 cm)
Gustave Courbet
France (Ornans, France, 1819 – 1877, La Tour-de-Peilz, Switzerland)
Object Type:
Painting
Medium and Support:
Oil on canvas
Credit Line:
Marion Stratton Gould Fund
Accession Number:
1943.11
Location: Currently on view
Painting is an essentially concrete art and can only consist in the representation of real and existing things.
- Gustave Courbet (1861)
Courbet was the leading painter of a movement called Realism. Many French citizens began to advocate for democratic and socialist reforms after the Revolution of 1848 overturned the monarchy of King Louis-Philippe. Realist painters depicted modern subjects drawn from the everyday lives of the working class.
The subject matter of The Stonebreaker is similar to that of Courbet’s The Stonebreakers, which Courbet exhibited at the Salon in 1850. The earlier painting, destroyed in World War II, depicted two men dressed in heavy, tattered clothing crushing rocks near a road. Because of its raw and, according to some viewers, politically motivated subject matter, The Stonebreakers was extremely controversial with the French public. The Gallery’s The Stonebreaker, painted over 20 years later, reflects a more intimate view of the laborer, solitary as he eats his midday meal.
- Gustave Courbet (1861)
Courbet was the leading painter of a movement called Realism. Many French citizens began to advocate for democratic and socialist reforms after the Revolution of 1848 overturned the monarchy of King Louis-Philippe. Realist painters depicted modern subjects drawn from the everyday lives of the working class.
The subject matter of The Stonebreaker is similar to that of Courbet’s The Stonebreakers, which Courbet exhibited at the Salon in 1850. The earlier painting, destroyed in World War II, depicted two men dressed in heavy, tattered clothing crushing rocks near a road. Because of its raw and, according to some viewers, politically motivated subject matter, The Stonebreakers was extremely controversial with the French public. The Gallery’s The Stonebreaker, painted over 20 years later, reflects a more intimate view of the laborer, solitary as he eats his midday meal.
Provenance
Heinrich Stahl, Berlin, Germany; Frederic A. Stern (dealer), Brussels and New York; purchased from Cosmos Art Inc., New York [Stern's gallery] by the Gallery in 1943.
Keywords
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genre scenes
scenes of everyday life
scenes of everyday life
jobs & work
depictions of working, also professions as subcategories
depictions of working, also professions as subcategories
Additional Images
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Exhibition List
This object was included in the following exhibitions:
- Ausstellung Gustave Courbet 9/28/1930 - 10/26/1930
- Courbet, tenth anniversary exhibition 11/7/1940 - 12/7/1940
- Retrospective of French Art Memorial Art Gallery 6/1/1948 - 9/1/1948
- European Paintings from the Rochester Memorial Art Gallery 1/15/1967 - 9/30/1967
- Treasures from Rochester Memorial Art Gallery 4/14/1977 - 5/28/1977
Bibliography
This object has the following bibliographic references:
- Article Scope: Reproduction only. Susan Dodge Peters, ed. Memorial Art Gallery: An Introduction to the Collection. Rochester, NY: Memorial Art Gallery in association with Hudson Hills Press, 1988.
- Article Scope: Reproduction only. Rochester Memorial Art Gallery of the University of Rochester Handbook. Rochester, NY: University of Rochester Press, 1961.
- Article Scope: Entry and reproduction. Denys Sutton. Treasures from Rochester: Exhibited at Wildenstein Galleries, New York, April 14-May 28, 1977: Summary Catalogue. Rochester, NY: Memorial Art Gallery, 1977.
- Apollo. London, England: Apollo
- Grant Holcomb, III, ed. Voices in the Gallery: Writers on Art. Rochester, NY: University of Rochester Press, 2001.
- Article Scope: Catalogue Raisonné Entry. Pierre Courthion. Tout l'oeuvre peint de Courbet. Paris, France: Flammarion, 1995.
- Article Scope: Catalogue Raisonné Entry. Robert Fernier. La Vie et l'Oeuvre de Gustave Courbet: Catalogue Raisonné. Paris, France: Fondation Wildenstein Volume Number: II
- Article Author: Galy, Bérangère. Article Title: Colonnes et Pilori: Résurgences et "Déboulonnement" du Maître d'Ornans. Article Scope: Mention and reproduction. Marie-Hélène Lavallée and Bérangère Galy. Gustave Courbet, d'Ornans. Infolio Éditions, 2007. Page Number: 119, Figure Number: XXIX
- John D. Morse. Old master paintings in North America: over 3000 masterpieces by 50 great artists . New York, NY: Abbeville Press, 1979.
- Rennie McQuilkin. Private Collection: Poems and Writer's Guide. Simsbury, CT: Antrim House, 2006.
Portfolio List
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This object is a member of the following portfolios: