Pissarro, Caillebotte, Toulouse-Lautrec: Impressionist outsiders

Course delivery and schedule

The course includes 7 x 90-minute sessions with plenty of opportunity for further conversations and networking during breaks and mealtimes.

Aims of the course

The course will allow you to:

• Discover why Pissarro, Caillebotte and Toulouse-Lautrec differed from other famous artists of the period.
• Comprehend the importance of the body of work produced by each artist.
• Understand how politics, sexuality and disability impacted on our chosen artists.

Course content

We explore the work of three talented artists prospering in France in the second-half of the 19th century, but differing in their backgrounds from the better-known circle of Impressionist painters. Camille Pissarro, the oldest of the Impressionist artists, came from a Jewish family in the Danish West Indies and was very interested in radical politics. Gustave Caillebotte was a wealthy artist and bachelor who did not need to sell his work. His best-known painting The Floor-Scrapers is both fascinating and controversial. Finally, Toulouse-Lautrec, an aristocrat with inherited disabilities, made the clubs of Montmartre his own. Each has left an exceptional body of work for us to study and enjoy.

Camille Pissarro was the most senior of the Impressionists, born in the Danish West Indies of Portuguese Jewish descent in 1830. Unknown to many, he retained his Danish nationality for the rest of his life. He was initiated in oil paint by the Danish artist Fritz Melbye and they visited Venezuela together. Pissarro went to Paris in 1855 and became a mainstay of the Impressionists; the only artist to exhibit at all eight Impressionist exhibitions. He was also the kindest of the Impressionists, giving his time freely to Gauguin among others, and also the most political, embracing radical politics in his middle age. His art encompassed cityscapes, figures and portraits, but he’s best known for his wonderful landscapes of the French countryside.

Gustave Caillebotte was born into a wealthy family in Paris in 1848. After obtaining a law degree, he went to the studio of Léon Bonnat, who introduced him to the art of Velázquez. Following the rejection of his most important work “The Floor-Scrapers” by the Paris Salon, Caillebotte joined the Impressionists where his moral and financial support was much appreciated. He then regularly exhibited with the group, although his painting style was usually Naturalistic. He depicted upper middle-class and urban life in Paris and was very keen on boating and sailing on the Seine and at sea. Influenced by Japanese prints and photography, he died aged only forty-five, leaving a very important bequest of works to the French state: Manet, Monet, Pissarro, Degas. 

Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec was born into an aristocratic family, and considerable in-breeding led to Henri suffering from an inherited genetic condition. Overcoming this obstacle, he too went to Bonnat’s art studio and then that of Fernand Cormon. He painted scenes of Montmartre life in both Impressionist and Post-Impressionist styles, spending much time drinking heavily and inhabiting brothels. His posters for Montmartre nightclubs are unsurpassed and he was also a very skilled painter, draughtsman, caricaturist and illustrator. He died at the age of thirty-six but left many images that are now regarded as iconic.

Presentation of the course

The course will be taught by PowerPoint presentations, interspersed with relevant film clips.

Class discussion will be encouraged throughout.

Course programme

Friday

Please plan to arrive between 16:30 and 18:30. You can meet other course participants in the Terrace Bar which opens at 18:15. Tea and coffee making facilities are available in the study bedrooms.

Saturday

Sunday

Course materials

Course materials include the course syllabus, detailed timetable, reading list and tutor biography. Once these materials are available, you can download them from the Documents section below. 

We will also email these to you before your course starts. Please check your spam folder if you have not received them.

Please note that our weekend courses are non-credit bearing and there is no formal assessment.

About Madingley Hall

This weekend course takes place at Madingley Hall, home to the University of Cambridge Institute of Continuing Education. Built in the 16th century, Madingley Hall is a Grade 1 listed building, and is set in eight acres of landscaped gardens designed in the 18th century by ‘Capability’ Brown. Madingley is just four miles from the centre of Cambridge, and only 60 minutes from London, with excellent links to London airports.

As a student you will enjoy award-winning cuisine in our elegant Dining Hall and first-rate facilities in an atmospheric and inspiring setting. You can choose to stay at the Hall in comfortable en suite accommodation, or attend as a non-resident.

Accommodation

Accommodation for residential students is provided in single, double or twin study bedrooms, with attractive views over the woods, gardens and courtyard.

Each room has internet access, a digital television and a direct-dial telephone, as well as tea- and coffee-making facilities and a safe for valuables. Rooms are all en suite and centrally heated.

A lift gives access to two bedrooms adapted for wheelchair users, and all areas on the ground floor can be reached once inside the building. If you would like us to make any special provision for your stay, please let us know when booking and we will be happy to discuss your requirements. 

Fees

Residential fees cover tuition, accommodation and meals from Friday dinner to Sunday lunch (a total of two breakfasts, two lunches, and two evening meals), as well as morning coffee and afternoon tea during teaching hours. 

Non-residential fees include tuition, lunches, evening meals, morning coffee and afternoon tea during teaching hours. 

Please note: accommodation spaces are limited and priority is given to course attendees. Non-residential places are available for those who live locally or who prefer to stay elsewhere. If space permits, non-student guests may accompany a course attendee for the weekend, paying the rate below for accommodation and meals. 

* where rooms are shared by course attendees, ie, where a partner or family member is also enrolled on a weekend course. 

Extra nights

We may be able to offer accommodation after your course should you wish to extend your stay. Please contact us if you would like to book an additional night. 

Dietary requirements

If you have any specific dietary requirements or allergies please indicate these when booking. 

Bursaries for teachers

Our State School Teacher bursary offers 50% off tuition fees for any teacher with Qualified Teacher Status working in a UK state-funded school or further education institution. 

You will be asked to enter the name and contact details of the school when booking.

Getting to Madingley Hall

The Institute of Continuing Education is based at Madingley Hall (CB23 8AQ) in the village of Madingley, four miles west of Cambridge. It is easily accessible from the M11, A14 and A428. Other gateways include Cambridge Main Railway Station and London airports.  

If you are arriving in Cambridge by train you can take a taxi to Madingley Hall. Please contact Reception to book a taxi for your return journey. 

Parking

Free on-site car parking is available and we have a small number of spaces close to the Hall entrance for Blue Badge holders. 

Booking a course

To book a weekend course please click the Book Now button at the top of the course page. You will be taken to our secure bookings portal where you can set up an account using your email address, and pay for your course by credit or debit card.

Payments

Payment can be made by credit/debit card using our secure online booking system, unless otherwise arranged. You can either pay in full at the time of booking, or pay a 15% registration fee as a deposit; the balance will automatically be taken two weeks before the start of the course. 

Booking deadlines

Bookings close 11 days before the start of the course. If your preferred course is full at the time of booking you can add yourself to a waiting list. You will be notified, by email, if a place becomes available. We recommend that you book early to avoid missing out.

Booking terms and conditions

Before booking your course, please ensure that you have read and understood our Booking terms and conditions.