Louis Vuitton exhibits two Impressionist masterpieces in its flagship store

Now this is big-picture thinking. 

The Fondation Louis Vuitton unveils today an exceptional exhibit of two French Impressionist masterpieces at its New York flagship. On loan from the Musée d’Orsay in Paris and the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles, respectively, Gustave Caillebotte’s Boating Party (circa 1877-1878) and Young Man at His Window (1876) depict 19th-century masculine life.

Boating Party, designated a “National Treasure” of France in 2020 by the Ministry of Culture, is considered to be one of Caillebotte’s greatest works. The canvas made its debut at the Fourth Impressionist Exhibition in Paris in 1879.

The Musée d’Orsay acquired the oil painting in 2023 from private owners for $47 million, thanks to a generous donation from LVMH, the French luxury goods giant which owns Louis Vuitton. 

It is one of the artist’s close-up boating-themed works. An avid rower and sailor himself, Caillebotte even designed and built his own skiffs.  

Young Man at his Window, meanwhile, portrays his brother, René Caillebotte, standing at a window in the family home in Paris and gazing out onto the Boulevard Malesherbes. 

Caillebotte joined the group of Impressionists – which included Claude Monet, Edgar Degas and Auguste Renoir – and presented this work at the Impressionism exhibition of 1876, along with a few other paintings.

Now New Yorkers have an opportunity to see it in midtown.

The exhibit is open through Nov. 16 at Espace Louis Vuitton, 6 E 57th Street, 5th floor. Complimentary tickets can be booked at SevenRooms.com.