Pierre-Auguste Renoir

(ren-WHAR)

French, 1841-1919

Woman Playing a Guitar, 1896-

Subject

Julie Manet, daughter of Impressionist Berthe Morisot and Èdouard Manet’s brother, Eugène, was charmed to discover this painting in progress in Renoir’s studio. “He’s doing some ravishing things with a guitar;” she wrote, “a woman with a white muslin dress, held by pink bows, leans gracefully over a large brown guitar, with her feet on a yellow cushion... It’s all colored, soft, delicious.” Julie provides a perfect description of this work, which captures a contemplative moment. Julie no doubt saw other paintings from this series of men and women playing the guitar, done late in Renoir’s career. The subject may have appealed to the artist for several reasons. Maybe the guitarists were successors to Renoir’s earlier paintings of young women playing the piano. Or perhaps he was inspired by the seductive Spanish dancer “la Belle Otero,” who performed with Paris’s famous entertainment review, the Folies-Bergères. The artist also loved the enchanting lute players of 18th-century French painting and, especially, the women playing musical instruments by 19th-century painter Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot. Renoir’s career veered from the Impressionist’s contemporary Paris life, and the modern dress worn by his earlier models. This guitar-player wears a simple, white costume. The solid, triangular composition recalls the monumental figures of classical painters Titian and Rubens centuries earlier.

Style

Color and composition make a dramatic impact in this painting. Notice the variety of colors in the skin and dress: warm yellow-gray and pink tones where the figure catches the light, and cool blue-gray and green shades in the shadows. Rich and glowing, the color harmonies capture the play of light and shadow that so interested the Impressionists. In terms of composition, the woman, chair, and guitar are painted to emphasize and repeat voluptuous curves. The curves in the foreground are anchored in space by the crisp verticals and horizontals of the background.

Artist

The son of a tailor, Pierre-Auguste Renoir studied with Monet at the classical Ècole des Beaux-Arts. As an Impressionist, he painted human figures enjoying modern pastimes in light-filled gardens, outdoor restaurants, and cafes. Soft brushstrokes and luminous color characterize his work. “For me a picture should be a pleasant thing, joyful and pretty ‑ yes pretty!” he said. Later in life, he favored the more conservative subjects, solid figures, and centered compositions of earlier, academic art. Like fellow artists Monet and Cassatt, he wondered if the Impressionists’ views of a fleeting moment in modern life would interest future generations.

Date: 2015-02-28; view: 752