Rain and Umbrella
c. 1875
Félix Hilaire Buhot captures the miserable beauty of a Parisian downpour in this moody scene, earning him a reputation as a master of atmospheric prints. A solitary figure, almost swallowed by a giant umbrella, trudges away down a slick, cobblestone alley, while a pack of scruffy, wet dogs sniffs around the puddles in the foreground. The artist uses frantic, scratchy lines to create the feeling of heavy rain and the gloom of tall, dark buildings closing in on the street. It’s a perfect snapshot of 19th-century urban life where the weather is the main character.
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