Pierre-Auguste Renoir (1841-1919) was one of the most famous of the Impressionist painters in Paris in the late 19th century. Everyone is familiar with his most famous paintings, especially several variations showing two young girls playing a piano. A generation ago a reproduction of one of these variations hung in a large number of homes, often above the family piano. Today you can see one of his original versions at the Musée d'Orsay in Paris, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, and the Musée de l'Orangerie in Paris.
Another of Renoir's most famous works, Luncheon of the Boating Party, is the subject of a very enjoyable book of the same name by Susan Vreeland, published in 2007. I've been reading it this week, and finding it very fascinating and full of wonderful details about Renoir and his friends, who were also very accomplished painters, art collectors, and writers.
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| The Luncheon of the Boating Party (Déjeuner des Canotiers). Philips Collection, Washington, DC. |
One very striking feature of Renoir's painting is the wonderfully disarrayed table where the people in the painting have been eating lunch and drinking wine. I started to think about how often Renoir painted food and drink, and did some searching for more paintings where he depicted wine, tea, coffee, and more. I found many still-life paintings and scenes of people enjoying various beverages. Here are a few of these Renoirs:
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| Cup of Chocolate, 1914. Barnes Collection. |
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| Oranges, Bananas, and Teacup, 1908, Barnes Foundation. |
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Lemons and Teacup, 1912
The McNay Art Museum, San Antonio, Texas. Wikimedia Commons. |
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| The Cup of Tea. 1906-1907. WikiArt. |
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| La Fin du Déjuner, 1879. Städelsches Kunstinstitut, Frankfurt, Germany |
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| Tea Time, 1911, Barnes Foundation. |
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| Dance at Le Moulin de la Galette. 1876. Wikiart. |
I was just coming by to talk about the Susan Vreeland book! I read it a few years ago and really enjoyed it.
ReplyDeleteI love Renoir so as you might guess, I really enjoyed "Luncheon of the Boating Party,"which I read about eight or nine years ago. I loved how the people were identified, like Caillebotte, the actress (Jeanne ???) and Charles Ephrussi. Did you read "The Hare with Amber Eyes," about the Ephrussi family? One of my favorites --non-fiction. I'm not always a fan of historic fiction about "real people" but I found this one enchanting. (I guess it depends on the research but Vreeland seems to have done her homework.) Rick has a print of this one in his bedroom and sometimes when I wake early, I'll look at it and imagine!
ReplyDeleteYou have put together a very interesting collection of Renoir's beautiful works, thanks! Valerie
ReplyDeleteRenoir is my favorite painter among the Impressionists. Thank you for showing us these. (The last one has long been a favorite of mine.)
ReplyDeleteThese are some gorgeous paintings! I could look at these all day.
ReplyDeleteHappy Tea Day,
Kate
oh how beautiful are these Renoir paintings.... I even have a rubber stamp of one - it's a day in the park scene:) Happy T day!
ReplyDeleteI love Renoir. Although he is considered an impressionist, his art is so much different from, say Monet or van Gogh. It is always recognizable, just like Degas and his ballerinas. Thank you for sharing these incredible paintings with us, spotlighting food and drink, for T this nearly Tuesday. I'm always impressed by your outside-the-box T Tuesday posts.
ReplyDeleteThere is so much life in his paintings.
ReplyDeleteHe must´ve been hungry and thirsty often! ;-)
ReplyDeleteLove his style. Happy T-day.
Happy T day Mae. I’ve wondered about that book so I’ll wait to read your review. Renoir’s are is wonderful and I love finding out about the man (or woman) behind the art. Have a fabulous T day. Hugs Erika
ReplyDeleteSuch beautiful paintings! Renoir has such an eye for detail; there is so much to see in his paintings and everytime you look you see something new - amazing 😁. Thanks for sharing and wishing you a Happy T Day! Take care! Hugs, Jo x
ReplyDeleteWonderful paintings describing life at the time. Thank you for the tip about Vreeland's book. Will try to find it. Love historical fiction. In the meantime, I enjoy the paintings.
ReplyDeleteThe last one is my favorite Renoir. I sure wish we could gather like that these days.
ReplyDeleteHappy T-day! Eileen xx
Lovely paintings. Happy T-Day!
ReplyDeleteGreat post for T Day! I so enjoyed looking at these paintings. Thank you for sharing and for the review of the book on the other post. I put it on my to read list.
ReplyDeleteHappy T Day!
I remember seeing Renoir paintings in the Orsay so I absolutely adored this post! Happy T Day! Chrisx
ReplyDeleteWhat a great painting! So much life and action in it. Thank you for recommending the book by Vreeland. I found the review just now, and have added it to my wish list. The Hare with the Amber eyes has been on that list for a while.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed all the drink related paintings. Thank you so much.
Happy T-Day,
Hugs,
Lisca
You found quite a few Renoir's paintings to fit T DAy. How clever. His paintings just seem so full of life. Happy T Day
ReplyDeleteFantastic post ~ I'm going to find the book and read it as I love the impressionistic artist period. Happy t day!
ReplyDeleteI love that boating party painting! Such a carefree atmosphere that was captured. Love it.,
ReplyDeleteHappy T day!