These are the 12 most famous paintings by Pierre-Auguste Renoir, an artist born in France in 1841. He was an important person in the Impressionist movement. Most of his famous paintings were portraits and landscapes. From the Impressionist style, he moved on to the Renaissance style in the middle of his career. This allowed him to bring more line and composition to his work, making him one of the top artists of his time.
Pierre-Auguste Renoir Summary
- Born in Cagnes-sur-Mer, in South East France
- Renowned for his paintings of feminine sensuality
- Studied under Swiss Charles Gleyre, as did Impressionist contemporaries Monet, Sisley, Bazille, and Whistler
- First exhibited a painting at the Paris Salon in 1864
- Co-created the First Impressionist Exhibition in 1874
Biography of Pierre-August Renoir
Early Life
Renoir was born into a poor family and was the son of a tailor. His family moved to Paris when he was young, and he grew up near the Louvre and this inspired his love of painting. The young Auguste was a talented singer, but his family was too poor to enable him to study music.
Later, he was apprenticed to a porcelain factory where he hand-painted pieces but was later made redundant. His employer saw his potential and helped him to study art in Paris. Renoir soon made the acquittance of many eminent artists and soon became a member of the Impressionist School, which was seen as to Avant-Garde at the time in Paris.
The wealthy Le Couer family became his patrons and allowed him to paint at their estate in Fontainebleau until he quarrelled with them. Renoir’s career was impacted by the Franco-Prussian War (1870-1871), and he stayed in Paris during the Prussian siege.
His fame grew as he submitted paintings to the Paris Salon and Impressionist exhibitions. Auguste Renoir married his former model and settled down to live outside Paris.
Family
He was the eldest son of Theodore Renoir. Renoir married Aline Victorine Charigot (1859 – 1915) and had a happy marriage. The couple had three children, including Pierre who went on to be a well-known actor (1895-1952) and Jean who was a director who created many masterpieces such as the Grand Illusions (1937).
Painting style
Pierre-Auguste Renoir’s style was characterized by the use of light and vibrant colours. He used light brushstrokes of colour for effect. He typically painted outside (en plein air) and painted subjects of everyday life. Among his favourite subjects were female nudes. Renoir combined traditional elements with the modern. His style can be characterised as one that was fascinated by colours.
Teacher
Pierre-Auguste Renoir was taught by the Swiss artist Charles Glerye. After inheriting the studio of Paul Delaroche, Gleyre mentored several significant artists, including Claude Monet, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Alfred Sisley, and Frédéric Bazille, who later pioneered Impressionism. However, Gleyre himself remained committed to classical traditions, opposing the modernist tendencies of his students.
Influences
Among the influences on Renoir were Eugene Delacroix and Watteau. His contemporaries were also important in his development such as Claude Monet.
Travels & places Pierre-Auguste Renoir painted
After Pierre-Auguste Renoir became a successful artist, he travelled widely. He visited France and Italy to study the great masters, including Velazquez and Titian in particular. Renoir was fascinated by light and shadow, and he visited Algeria twice, to paint. Renoir also painted on the Channel Islands (United Kingdom).
Final painting
The last painting by Pierre-Auguste Renoir is thought to be Les Baigneuses or ‘The Bathers’ which was painted between 1918 and 1919, the year of his death. The picture depicts two groups of nude women bathing and is notable for the two women in the front having unusually large arms and legs.
Later Life
Most of his later years were spent in Cagnes-sur-Mer in the French Riviera of South-Eastern France. In the 1890s Renoir developed a series of health complaints. In particular, he developed arthritis and his caused him to lose the use of his hands which were frequently bandaged. This did not stop him from painting, and he continued to paint in his home outside Paris. An assistant would also often help him paint. Indeed, he produced several masterpieces at this time. Indeed, despite his health issues he also took up sculpture. Even in old age, he was experimenting with a variety of different techniques.
Pierre-Auguste Renoir’s Death
In 1919, Pierre-Auguste Renoir suffered a heart attack and passed away at his home in Cagnes-sur-Mer. Before he died, he visited the Louvre with his son and to his great pleasure saw his paintings hanging alongside the Old Masters that he so admired.
Renoir’s notable Sold paintings
Renoir’s paintings fetch millions at auctions. His paintings, like the other great Impressionists, are very much in demand. The record for a Renoir painting was for a smaller version of the famous genre painting Bal du moulin de la Galette (1888). This was for a time one of the globe’s most expensive paintings. It was sold for $78 million back in 1990 by American philanthropist Betsey Whitney to Japanese businessman Ryoei Saito. The painting has not been seen since its Sotheby’s, New York auction and its current whereabouts is unknown.
Legacy
Renoir was crucial in the development of Impressionism. Later his work foreshadowed that of post-impressionism. Renoir’s style was a combination of the modern and traditional as seen in his composition and this influenced great modern painters such as Picasso and Matisse. Renoir was crucial in creating a visual idiom that allowed artists to capture modern societies.
Famous Pierre-August Renoir Paintings
Dance at Le Moulin de la Galette (1876)
This is probably number one out of all of the famous paintings by Pierre-Auguste Renoir. It depicts a well-known Parisian lifestyle on a Sunday afternoon, when working-class Parisians dress up and spend the afternoon dancing, drinking, and eating. “Dance at Le Moulin de la Galette” is also known as “Bal du Moulin de la Galette.” It’s a stunning example of Renoir’s ability to capture the dappled light created by sunshine reflected through tree leaves.
Two Sisters On the Terrace (1881)
This painting is of the brilliance of a stunning young woman on a warm and beautiful day. She looks away from her younger friend, who appears to have just raced into the scene in a lovely visual conceit. Renoir placed solid, almost life-size characters in a scene that, like a stage set, appears to be a realm of pure vision and fantasy. This is also one of the most famous paintings by Pierre-Auguste Renoir.
Girls at the Piano (1892)
This painting depicts two sisters playing music together in their spare time. They seem to be reading the lyrics together before deciding how to put the song together. It’s a classical work of art, both in subject and style. More than any other member of the Impressionist movement, Renoir would prove to be a controversial figure in this regard.
Portrait of Alfred Sisley (1868)
This painting is of a loving gesture between two people. The excellent depiction of the expensive silk fabric dominates the image with its red and gold stripes and is plain of the highest quality. The background is blurred to keep the attention on the main subject which is the couple.
Portrait of Claude Monet (1875)
This painting depicts Monet working on his own painting while dressed in his working clothes and holding his color palette and paintbrushes. Monet appears to be motionless for a brief moment as if he is about to move and return to his painting. The jagged, repetitive brushstrokes effectively portray the transient aspect of the sunshine flowing through the window, which exemplifies the Impressionist movement’s skills.
A Girl with a Watering Can (1876)
This painting is of a young girl standing on a pathway in a fully blooming garden, carrying a small watering can in her right hand and some flowers in her left. The girl in the garden appears to be joyful and innocent, appealing to the viewer’s emotions and imagination. This painting has a mature impressionistic style to it.
Madame Charpentier and her children (1878)
This is a painting of Madame Charpentier with her two children in an intimate scene within the family’s magnificent Parisian townhouse. Renoir’s palette is rich, and his brushwork is strong, with its powerful diagonals, which welcome the observer into a private place. The dress codes that indicate gender are related to culture as well as a certain moment and location in history.
Dance at Bougival (1882–1883)
This is a painting of Suzanne Valadon and Paul Auguste Llhote, two of Renoir’s friends. These were people he cared about and whose modest pleasures he shared without hesitation. Renoir’s first reversion to a more classical manner of painting, which he learned from imitating paintings in the Louvre while preserving the bright palette of his fellow Impressionists, is presented in this work. This, along with it’s sister paintings Dance in the Country and Dance in the City are among the famous paintings by Pierre-Auguste Renoir.
Dance in the Country (1883)
This is a painting of Renoir’s close friend, Paul Lhôte, with his future wife, Mme. Aline Renoir, dancing under a chestnut tree. Renoir painted these loving dancing couples using a new method with more accurate shapes and a more limited palette. Raphael’s stylistic influence is long thought to be present in this painting.
Dance in the City (1883)
This is a painting of an elegant Parisienne who waltzes with her dance partner at a winter party. “Dance In The City” is one of a series of three paintings that depict an intimate and carefully observed moment (the others are Dance In The Country and Dance At Bougival). The couple’s feelings are more restrained in “Dance In The City” than in the other two paintings.
The Large Bathers (1887)
This painting is of a short moment when one of the bathers threatens to splash a companion, who has an everlasting, monumental sense about it. The characters’ sculptural portrayal against a shimmering background, as well as the precise application of dried paint, are reminiscent of 17th and 18th-century French art.
Luncheon of the Boating Party (1880–1881)
By far one of the most famous paintings by Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Luncheon of the Boating Party is a painting of a group of people having lunch on the bright balcony of the Maison Fournaise, a restaurant, rowboat rental establishment, and hotel on the banks of the Îsle de Chatou. It’s one of Renoir’s biggest artworks. Renoir’s three characteristic subjects: portraits, still-life portrayals, and en Plein air settings are all represented in this artwork.
What famous paintings by Pierre-Auguste Renoir do you think we should add to this list? Comment below.