Pierre-Auguste Renoir
1841 — 1919
Impressionism — France
A French painter who produced roughly six thousand works during his lifetime, Renoir pursued the softest light and colors within Impressionism. He painted a wide range of subjects including portraits, nudes, landscapes, and still lifes, but his passion for female figures never waned until the end.
Pierre-Auguste Renoir, born into a tailor's family in Limoges, pursued painting after an apprenticeship as a porcelain painter. He worked outdoors with Claude Monet and Alfred Sisley, becoming a central figure in the Impressionist exhibitions. In his later years, he moved to Cagnes-sur-Mer in the South of France, where he moved towards a richer, more sculptural expression of human figures.
Born: February 25, 1841, Limoges (France)
Died: December 3, 1919, Cagnes-sur-Mer
Main subjects: Portraits, female figures/nudes, landscapes, still lifes
Major collections: Musée d'Orsay, Museum of Modern Art (New York), State Hermitage Museum, National Gallery (London), etc.
Renoir's Journey
1841 – 1854
Born in Limoges, the sixth of seven children. His family, with a tailor father and a seamstress mother, was not well-off. The family moved to Paris in search of a better life.
1854 – 1861
At age 13, he apprenticed at a porcelain painting workshop, decorating plates and porcelain with flowers and portraits. The delicate brushwork and transparent color sense cultivated here would later be passed on to his oil paintings. He frequented the Louvre Museum, becoming familiar with Rubens and 18th-century French painting.
1862 – 1870
He enrolled in the École des Beaux-Arts and also attended Charles Gleyre's studio, where he met Claude Monet, Alfred Sisley, and Frédéric Bazille. They worked together near the Forest of Fontainebleau and along the Seine, beginning to explore the expression of light outdoors.
1874 – 1877
Participated in the First Impressionist Exhibition. Thereafter, he became one of the most prominent figures in the Impressionist group. In his works depicting Parisian social scenes and boating, he captured the changing light and the lively expressions of people.
1881 – 1890s
Traveled to Italy and was impressed by Renaissance frescoes and Ingres' linear drawing. After a period emphasizing contours and composition over color, his style gradually matured into a richer, softer depiction of figures.
1900s – 1910s
Moved to Cagnes-sur-Mer in the South of France. As rheumatoid arthritis progressed, it is said that he continued to paint in his later years with a brush strapped to his hand. Nevertheless, his pursuit of voluptuous and serene female figures never faded, and he produced many intimate portraits such as "Bust of a Woman."
1919
Died in Cagnes on December 3 from a lung disease. Buried in Essoyes, Aube. In his later years, he reportedly told his caregiver, "I feel like I'm finally beginning to understand something."
Renoir Today
Approximately six thousand works were produced over a sixty-year career. Far from diminishing his reputation, this prolific output remains one of the reasons he is still one of the most sought-after painters in French art. His soft brushstrokes and warm colors went beyond the Impressionist exploration of light, capturing the very intimacy of human existence.
Works Available
Galerie de la Présidence holds "Bust of a Woman," painted around 1904, and one intimate female portrait from Renoir's later years. Please see the works page for details.