Pierre-Auguste Renoir: Life and Painting

Pierre-Auguste Renoir was born in France in 1841, into a working-class family. He got his first job at a porcelain factory, where he worked as a painter. His superiors were very pleased with the young Renoir's work, and the artist himself realized he had a natural talent. After that, Renoir decided to study under Charles Gleyre, a well-known painter who also taught Claude Monet. It was in Gleyre's studio that Renoir, Monet, Jean-Frédéric Bazille, and Alfred Sisley began experimenting with the Impressionist style.

Painting outdoors rather than in the studio, Renoir and his friends were captivated by the effects of light in nature, working with quick brushstrokes in an effort to capture a fleeting moment. He and Monet realized that shadows are not black but simply reflect the colors around them, and they eventually abandoned black altogether. Although the friends often worked together, their painting styles differed: Renoir focused more on human figures, while Monet focused on nature.

Read on and follow the evolution of Renoir's style through his most famous works.

La Grenouillère, 1869

The Frog Pond (La Grenouillère) was painted many times by both Renoir and Monet. In this work by Renoir, we can see that the artist closely observed how light and color reflected on the water and danced in the leaves of the trees. Despite the thick, short brushstrokes, he paid great attention to each human figure on the platform.

Renoir's early career was not particularly successful. He believed that to gain recognition, he had to exhibit his work at the Salon, the most prestigious art exhibition, organized by the Academy, but the Salon did not accept the Impressionists. Finally, in 1874, he began exhibiting his work together with the other Impressionists, and his career gradually gained momentum.

Dance at the Moulin de la Galette, 1876

Perhaps Renoir's best-known work, Dance at the Moulin de la Galette, depicts the bustling life of Montmartre, Paris. Here, the city's working people would gather to drink and dance. Renoir's loose style beautifully conveys movement and action while still keeping the main figures clearly defined. Still, the light falling through the leaves onto the dancers deserves the most attention.

Luncheon of the Boating Party, 1881

In 1878, Renoir stopped exhibiting his work together with the Impressionists. He began to feel that the Impressionists were too loose, and that art needed form and structure. In Luncheon of the Boating Party, the artist used a stricter composition and defined the figures more clearly. Although the brushstrokes are more controlled, the focus on color and light remains prominent. During this period, Renoir traveled extensively through Italy, Spain, and England, studying the works of the old masters. He was especially impressed by the great colorist Peter Paul Rubens, the French Rococo painter François Boucher, and the Romantic Eugène Delacroix.

Two Young Girls at the Piano, 1892

This painting was commissioned by the Luxembourg Museum and reflects Renoir's late style, marking his departure from the Impressionists. The orderly composition, clear lines, and carefully rendered texture show the influence of Rubens, Boucher, and Delacroix. Both the subject matter and the composition move closer to the Academic tradition, turning away from plein-air painting. Still, the influence of Impressionism can still be seen in the choice of colors, in the flashes of light, and in the shadows. For example, look closely at how many different colors were used to create the curtain and drapery behind the piano.

Despite various health problems, Renoir continued painting until his death in 1919, creating thousands of paintings over the course of his career. Today, the artist is remembered as one of the most important figures of the Impressionist movement, a master of light and color. His fidelity to color and his tendency toward stricter composition had a major influence on the Post-Impressionists and Fauvists, inspiring a new generation of artists.