SEASON HIGHLIGHTS
Both an artist and a patron-part of his collection now hangs in the Musée d'Orsay-Gustave Caillebotte is best known for his Paris cityscapes. Yet his body of work also reveals a passion for non-urban pursuits-specifically water sports; an avid rower and yachtsman, he even designed sailboats. "Oarsmen Rowing on the Yerres" (1877), above, illustrates both his realist tendencies and his fondness for perspectives that draw the viewer into the picture. The immediacy of the piece reflects his intimate knowledge of the subject matter; his well-to-do family spent many summers at their estate on the Yerres River, just south of Paris. The canvas is one of about 40 on view in GUSTAVE CAILLEBOTTE: IMPRESSIONIST PAINTINGS FROM PARIS TO THE SEA, which also includes drawings, photographs and sailboat models. Through July 5 at the Brooklyn Museum; brooklynmuseum.org.

New York
BONNARD
Comprising 70 oils, watercolors and drawings, Pierre Bonnard: Still Life and the Late Interiors is the first exhibition devoted exclusively to this part of the artist's oeuvre. Infused with Mediterranean light and color, the pieces on view date from 1923 to 1947, the year of Bonnard's death. Many were painted at Le Bosquet, the villa near Cannes that he shared with his wife, Marthe. Through April 29 at The Metropolitan Museum of Art; metmuseum.org.

Pittsburgh
BARBIZON LANDSCAPES
Named after a village near the Forest of Fontainebleau, the Barbizon School of painting favored both a style and a subject matter rooted in real life-naturalistic landscapes and depictions of laboring peasants rather than the idealized imagery and historical scenes that reigned at the Salon. Its practitioners embraced plein air practices decades before the Impressionists set up their easels outdoors. The Road to Impressionism: Barbizon Landscapes from the Walters Art Museum examines the school's place on the art historical spectrum through works by such artists as Théodore Rousseau, Jean-François Millet and Camille Corot. Through May 3 at the Frick Art & Historical Center; thefrickpittsburgh.org.

West Palm Beach
IMPRESSIONIST LANDSCAPES
Forty French and American paintings from the late 19th and early 20th centuries are displayed in Landscapes from the Age of Impressionism. The exhibit follows the arc of the Impressionist movement, from its origins in the plein air practices of the Barbizon and Realist schools to its full expression in the hands of Monet, Renoir, Sisley and others to its influence on American painters such as George Innes and John Singer Sargent. Through May 10 at the Norton Museum of Art; norton.org.

Baltimore
CIRCUS ART
Opening with vibrant posters by Toulouse-Lautrec and Jules Chéret, A Circus Family: Picasso to Léger brings together some 75 paintings, sculptures and works on paper featuring clowns, acrobats and other performers. These late 19th- and early 20th-century pieces range from celebrations of the circus as spectacle to social commentary to windows onto the lives of entertainers outside the ring. Through May 17 at the Baltimore Museum of Art; artbma.org.

Portland, OR
LA VOLUPTÉ DU GOÛT
In addition to being the official mistress of Louis XV, the Marquise de Pompadour was a keen patron of the arts who helped to shape the tastes of her time. La volupté du goût: French Painting in the Age of Madame de Pompadour brings together more than 50 paintings that she either commissioned or collected, many never before exhibited outside France and some featuring her likeness as a mythological figure or otherwise. Among the 24 artists highlighted are Boucher, Fragonard, Greuze and Vanloo. Through May 17 at the Portland Art Museum; portlandartmuseum.org.

Philadelphia
CÉZANNE AND BEYOND
Cézanne and Beyond explores the evolution of the artist's career and his still unexhausted influence on generations of artists in France and abroad-Picasso, for one, referred to him as "my one and only master." To illustrate how Cézanne's vision informed Cubism and numerous other artistic movements, some 60 of his oils, watercolors and drawings are juxtaposed with dozens of paintings by such diverse artists as Braque, Matisse, Giacometti, Mondrian and Johns. Through May 17 at the Philadelphia Museum of Art; philamuseum.org.

Washington, DC
LOUISE BOURGEOIS
Still evolving as an artist at the age of 97, Louise Bourgeois has remained at the forefront of the contemporary art scene for some 70 years, driven in part by an enduring need to exorcize memories of an unhappy childhood. The most comprehensive retrospective to date of her work, uniting more than 150 paintings, works on paper, installations and sculptures, Louise Bourgeois illustrates the artist's singular ability to express themes at once personal and universal and to do so in both abstract and figurative modes. Through May 17 at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden; hirshhorn.si.edu.

New York
CAST IN BRONZE
In the 16th century, thanks largely to Italian artists working at the court of François I, the French came to appreciate bronze for its aesthetic rather than simply utilitarian properties. During the next 300 years, the art of the bronze flourished in France in myriad incarnations, from statuettes to royal monuments. Today, however, the names of most of its leading practitioners are known only to connoisseurs. Cast in Bronze: French Sculpture from Renaissance to Revolution brings together 125 works in the culmination of a decade-long effort by curators and scholars to shed light on this underappreciated subject. Through May 24 at The Metropolitan Museum of Art; metmuseum.org.

New Haven
PICASSO AND LANGUAGE
After setting up his studio in Montmartre in 1904, Picasso joined an artistic circle that included such literary figures as Guillaume Apollinaire, Pierre Reverdy and Gertrude Stein. These encounters fueled a lifelong fascination with the written word that would manifest itself in numerous ways, from the imagery in certain paintings to illustrated book projects to literary efforts of his own. Picasso and the Allure of Language explores this overlooked aspect of the artist's oeuvre through some 70 works in all media, along with photographs, manuscripts and other archival materials. Through May 24 at the Yale University Art Gallery; artgallery.yale.edu.

René Lalique's diamond, enamel and glass "Poppy Necklace" (circa 1900-1903), at San Francisco's Legion of Honor. Photo courtesy of Mississippi Museum of Art

San Francisco
ARTISTIC LUXURY
Through nearly 300 pieces of jewelry and decorative objects, Artistic Luxury: Fabergé, Tiffany, Lalique compares the styles and techniques of three of the finest designers of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The show also explores how these rivals for the most elite of clienteles-royals, celebrities, captains of industry-marketed their creations by presenting them as works of art rather than of craftsmanship. Through May 31 at the Legion of Honor; famsf.org.

Columbia, SC
TURNER TO CÉZANNE
Presenting 53 paintings and works on paper, Turner to Cézanne: Masterpieces from the Davies Collection, National Museum Wales offers an overview of the major movements of 19th- and early 20th-century Western art, from romantic naturalism to Post-Impressionism. The pieces on display were among 260 donated to the museum by the Welsh heiresses Gwendoline and Margaret Davies, who between 1908 and 1923 amassed the largest collection of French Impressionist and Post-Impressionist art in Great Britain. Through June 7 at the Columbia Museum of Art; columbiamuseum.org.

Raoul Dufy's "La console jaune" (1949) is a highlight of Jackson's "A Celebration of Beauty." Photo: ©Tim Thayer/Artists Rights Society, New York/ADAGP, Paris

Jackson, MS
RAOUL DUFY
Influenced by Impressionism, Cubism and, most famously, Fauvism, Raoul Dufy developed a joyful style distinguished by its exuberant palette and dynamic use of line. In addition to being a painter and illustrator, Dufy was a prolific decorative artist, designing both ceramics and textiles. He left his stamp on the world of fashion through repeated collaborations with couturier Paul Poiret, as well as more than 5,000 fabric designs-some still in production-for the renowned Lyon silk manufacturer Bianchini-Férier. Raoul Dufy: A Celebration of Beauty presents some 200 paintings, drawings and textile designs as well as 13 dresses made with Dufy fabrics. Through July 5 at the Mississippi Museum of Art; msmuseumart.org.

Baltimore
PRAYERS IN CODE
A kind of devotional day planner for lay Christians, books of hours became status symbols in medieval times; the finest featured exquisite miniatures and marginal decorations rendered in gold leaf, silver and costly pigments such as lapis lazuli. Prayers in Code: Books of Hours from 16th-Century France explores such themes as the vogue for rebuses and the intellectual currents that influenced patrons at the court of King François I. April 25 through July 19 at the Walters Art Museum; thewalters.org.

New York
THE MODEL AS MUSE
From the elegant figures sporting Christian Dior's New Look in the classic Avedon photographs to the waifish Kate Moss as the face of 1990s heroin chic, models have both reflected and shaped the fashion zeitgeist. The Model as Muse: Embodying Fashion examines this synergy through some 70 haute couture and ready-to-wear garments, along with photographs and video footage of models, actresses and other style icons. Among the many familiar faces on view are Suzy Parker, Twiggy, Lauren Hutton, Linda Evangelista and Gisele Bündchen; designers represented include Armani, Cardin, Chanel, Prada and Saint Laurent. May 6 through Aug. 9 at The Metropolitan Museum of Art; metmuseum.org.

Atlanta
LOUVRE ATLANTA
Louvre Atlanta, now in its third and final year, has transformed a wing of the High Museum of Art into an outpost of the venerable French institution. The concluding exhibition, "The Louvre and the Masterpiece" brings together 91 sculptures, paintings, drawings and decorative items spanning four millennia to explore how taste, connoisseurship and the definition of "masterpiece" have evolved over the ages. Through Sept. 6; louvreatlanta.org.

Philadelphia
LA CÔTE D'AZUR
As well as being one of the world's most celebrated resort areas, the French Riviera holds a significant place in art history as a source of inspiration to some of the great masters of the 20th century. Among these was Matisse, who praised "the richness and silvery clarity of the light" in Nice, where he spent the last three decades of his life. Twelve of the works he created during this period form the core of Henri Matisse and Modern Art on the French Riviera, which also includes pieces by Picasso, Braque, Bonnard and Maillol, among others. Through Nov. 1 at the Philadelphia Museum of Art; philamuseum.org.