Caillebotte Festival of Yerres

The Caillebotte Festival in Yerres: Impressionism in the Heart of Essonne

The Caillebotte Estate in Yerres is one of the key sites of Impressionism in France. It was on this exceptional estate, on the banks of the Yerres river, that the Caillebotte family spent their summers between 1860 and 1879. The painter Gustave Caillebotte (1848-1894), one of the masters of Impressionism and a friend of Monet, Renoir, and Degas, created many famous canvases here, depicting the park, the boaters on the river, and family life in the countryside.

A Preserved Impressionist Estate

The estate includes the fully restored main house, an English-style park of several hectares, an ornate farm, an orangery, an ice house, a vegetable garden, and sports facilities. Classified as a historic monument and reopened to the public in 2017, it is a unique cultural and visitor site in the Île-de-France region, allowing visitors to walk in the footsteps of the painter and understand how the light and nature of Essonne inspired his work.

A Rich Summer Cultural Program

Each summer, the Caillebotte House presents an ambitious cultural program to bring this Impressionist heritage to life:

Temporary Exhibitions

The Orangery and the Ornate Farm host contemporary art exhibitions each year from May to October, engaging in a dialogue with the Impressionist legacy. The 2025 edition featured Evi Keller in the Orangery (May 17 – September 14, 2025), while 2026 will see the exhibitions “Nature is Not a Set – From Monet to Contemporary Artists” and “Dominique Renson – Artist and Models” (May 8 – October 18, 2026).

Impressionist Painting Workshops

Outdoor painting workshops allow participants to learn Impressionist techniques in the very setting where Caillebotte painted his most beautiful works. Guided by a professional painter, participants explore the effects of light, color, and texture characteristic of Impressionism, whether they are beginners or experienced amateurs.

Nature and Discovery Excursions

Guided tours of the park and house reveal the spaces that inspired Caillebotte's most famous paintings. Boat and canoe excursions on the Yerres offer a unique perspective of the site, allowing visitors to see the property from the river as the painter did. Tours of the historic vegetable garden and the ice house complete the discovery.

Immersive Experiences

Impressionist sensory experiences invite visitors to perceive the estate through all their senses: scents, sounds, textures, and flavors evoke the atmosphere of 19th-century summers in Yerres. These innovative experiences offer a new way to approach Impressionism, accessible to both children and adults.

Yerres, an Impressionist Town

The town of Yerres has made its Caillebotte heritage a cornerstone of its cultural identity. Every year, thousands of visitors come to discover this unique site, one of the few to have retained the original appearance of a late 19th-century bourgeois property where Impressionist artists lived and worked. The Caillebotte House is managed by the town of Yerres with the support of the department of Essonne and the Île-de-France region.