Description
It depicts his close family, with himself at the far left behind his seated parents, gathered on the terrace of the family home at Méric, near Montpellier, France. The group are in the shade of a large tree on a sunny day, which enhanced the variations between light and shade. In contrast with Claude Monet‘s picture Women in the Garden, which Bazille had recently bought from the artist, and in which the subjects are captured absorbed in their own activity, Bazille’s subjects are all motionless, looking at the viewer, giving his work the stilted feel of a wedding photograph.
Nevertheless the painting was accepted for exhibition by the Salon in 1868 in preference to Monet’s more daring compositions. It was acquired in 1905 by the State museums from the Bazille family.
Bibliography
The Family Reunion (painting), https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Family_Reunion_(painting)&oldid=1099871772 (last visited Aug. 5, 2022).
