When Paris Street; Rainy Day debuted in 1877, one critic referred to its artist as being “an impressionist in name only”. Without doubt, Caillebotte here shows great care for solid forms, shadowing, line and contours that his contemporaries were largely indifferent to. The tight brushwork of the artist ensures that objects do not dissolve into one another (as was common in the work of Monet and Morisot), while the compositional balance and stability of the work make apparent its staged nature (differentiating it from the “snapshot” style adopted by Degas). Nevertheless, the decision to represent the Parisian upper-classes and the attention given to light and reflection clearly illustrate an impressionist influence on the
