A Sunday on La Grande Jatte

A Sunday on La Grande Jatte - 1884

I recently visited The Art Institute of Chicago and saw Georges Seurat’s iconic painting, A Sunday on La Grande Jatte. For those of you who are unfamiliar with Georges Seurat, he was a 19th-century artist who is a well known Pointillist. Pointillism is a dotted technique where from a distance, the multi-colored dots blend together to form an image for the viewer. A Sunday on La Grande Jatte displays a group of wealthy Parisians enjoying the views of the Seine River on a bright day. The women are dressed in long-sleeved shirts, skirts, and hats, and are carrying parasols to protect themselves from the sun. A woman on the far left by the river is fishing, one of the women in the center is walking with her daughter, and the larger woman on the far right is staring off into the distance. The same woman on the far right is not only enjoying the beauty of the island, but is holding in her left hand a leash with a monkey on it. In my opinion, the pet monkey is meant to reinforce the perception of the frivolity of the upper class. The men are wearing black suits with top hats to represent the wealthy patriarchal society. As the viewer, your eye focuses on the women’s parasol and skirts. The Seine River occupies the left portion of the canvas and the viewer can see several sailing and rowing activities. Off in the distance, there are many couples walking and enjoying the beauty of the riverbank. With the exception of the woman and her child walking under a red parasol in the center of the painting, the other people are staring to the left toward the river engaged in the beauty of the river and the activities. There is no connection between the viewer and the individuals in the painting, leaving it up to the viewer to interpret. There are orange and brown spikes that protrude from the right-hand side of the painting, which are curious and peek the viewer’s interest. If you cannot make it to Chicago, Seurat painted 24 case studies, which are showcased in other museums. In fact, his final case study is showcased at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York if you are interested in seeing how this painting has evolved.

Source:http://www.artic.edu/aic/collections/citi/images/standard/WebLarge/WebImg_000319/8720_3810663.jpg