About the artist
Pierre Auguste Renoir was born in Limoges, south-west France, in 1841. He began his career as a porcelain painter. This is perhaps not as surprising as it may sound, given that Limoges has been a a reputable manufacturing centre of porcelain since the late 18th century.
He was one of the founders and leading members of the Impressionist movement. Impressionism is characterised by its subject matter and technique. Artists typically preferred to paint outdoors rather than a studio, resulting in landscapes becoming a common subject matter, as is illustrated in this work by Renoir. The artists chose to capture modern life, and depicted streets, people and everyday life.
During his studies to become a professional artist, he met and became friends with Claude Monet. The two became friends, and worked alongside each other for many years, both responsible for founding the Impressionist movement. It was during their time working together that they developed a distinctive technique which one would liken to sketching.
Later in his career, in the 1870’s, Renoir decided to turn away from Impressionism and try his hand at different styles. In fact, in the 20th century, he even experimented with sculpture. He was a much more versatile artist than what he is perhaps given credit for.
Landscape painting/Pierre Auguste Renoir (1841-1919)/Watercolour with pen and ink and pencil drawing on paper/19th century/The Hunt Collection/PD
Landscape painting/Pierre Auguste Renoir (1841-1919)/Watercolour with pen and ink and pencil drawing on paper/19th century/The Hunt Collection/PD
Landscape painting/Pierre Auguste Renoir (1841-1919)/Watercolour with pen and ink and pencil drawing on paper/19th century/The Hunt Collection/PD
Landscape painting/Pierre Auguste Renoir (1841-1919)/Watercolour with pen and ink and pencil drawing on paper/19th century/The Hunt Collection/PD
Sketch description
This unfinished work in watercolour, is included in the volume of Claude Renoir, Seize Aquarelles et Sanguines de Renoir, published in Paris in 1948. It is typical of this period of experimentation using pen and ink. Renoir meticulously drew the clusters of trees and bushes on the hillside. In the foreground, he has apparently sketched the reeds at the edge of a pool and indicated their reflection.
During his time working alongside Monet, Renoir developed a technique of broad, loose brushstrokes and used a colourful palette, which can be seen in this particular sketch. The centre of the composition boasts a series of colourful brush strokes, capturing the form of the landscape. This is overlaid with more refined strokes, blending greens, orange -brown, yellow and grey-blue to model delicate details in the trees.
In the image below is another watercolour by Renoir, which resides in the The Met Museum. Again, we can see Renoir’s penchant for landscapes. The palette here also consists of bright colours, although the mood is perhaps a little more sombre with the use of deep blues and purples. This work was painted in 1889. At this time, Renoir rented the house of Paul Cézanne’s brother-in-law in Aix-en-Provence, southern France.
Watercolour landscape/ Pierre Auguste Renoir/19th century/ Robert Lehman Collection, 1975/Met Museum/PD
Sources
Kang, Cindy. “Auguste Renoir (1841–1919).” In Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/augu/hd_augu.htm (May 2011)
“Pierre-Auguste Renoir”, The National Gallery. https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/artists/pierre-auguste-renoir
“Guide to Impressionism”, The National Gallery. https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/learn-about-art/guide-to-impressionism
