A Painter Who Never Needed the Money: Caillebotte's The Floor Scrapers

True to its title, this Caillebotte painting shows workers scraping a wooden floor. The handling of light pouring in through the window on the left is a hallmark of Impressionist technique, and the way an ordinary, everyday scene is captured almost like a snapshot is equally characteristic of the movement.

Caillebotte submitted the painting to the Salon, but a work centering working-class laborers stood little chance at an institution as conservative as the Salon, and it was rejected. He later showed it at the second Impressionist exhibition, where, much like most Impressionist paintings at the time, it failed to generate much enthusiasm.

None of that mattered much to Caillebotte, though. He came from a wealthy family and had no financial need to sell his work for a living.