The Isolation of Modern Society

After looking over Caillebotte's art, I personally believe that his art has made me evaluate what I see the most.  In many of his pictures (shown below) there is a clear point of isolation. Now Isolation can be a subject or a point within a picture that is singled out from the rest of the art, or it can mean just what many people feel in society, alone. In many of his paintings he displays both kinds of isolation. In the first two pictures one can see couples everywhere, but then there is one lonely single person in the picture (whether foreground or background). His paintings show a modern society, because he paints according to the times; modernity. However, his paintings also depict the nature of modern society; couples and singles. Caillebotte's paintings also seem more like a critique of how modern life was. These pictures all seem to have a great outlook on each picture because of the composition of it. However, in the same bright happy composition is shadows and isolation within which brings a gloomy feel to the painting.  Why is isolation seeming to be a key in Caillebotte's paintings? In all honesty I believe it is because that is how modern society became and that is what Caillebotte wanted to show. Society was no longer a close knit people but separate and some isolated by the rest of society. This shows almost a class division as well in the first picture. The couple to the left look like they are in nicer clothing then the isolated person in more warn clothing on the right side. This man is isolated in a few ways, 1. he looks like a lower class then the people to the left, 2. he is looking beyond the bridge,3. he stands alone over the railing of the bridge, and 4. he is standing in the shadows giving his a sadder feeling then everyone else.

In the last picture one sees how everyone is alone in the painting. Yet, one thing that is isolated almost on the top center of the painting is a couple walking together. This displays a hopeful cheery outlook when the mood seems to be gloomy because everyone is alone. Caillebotte's  painting can create a different mood that is opposite of the initial mood when looking at the full painting. What Caillebotte is doing is almost like isolating the emotions the viewer feels about the one difference in the picture compared to the picture as a whole. Caillebotte used isolation mixed with modern society to show a diffrernt outlook on how society has become and looks. By doing this his painting created emotions by looking at the full picture, but also by lookg at what was isolated within the picture. Now I might not be fully covering what we talked about in class, but this is my in depth look at how Caillebotte's art works is comprised of isolation and modernity.