Renoir, with incredibly bright paintings and the ability to be forever happy, sparked the imagination. The "mysterious" origin of the happiness of the great artist has always been of interest to his contemporaries, who sought to solve this "incomprehensible mystery".
Girl with Fan 1881
Painter biography page
He was born in Limoges, southwestern France. The parents of this illustrious artist had nothing to do with the art of painting: they were all ordinary people - August's parents were tailors. As soon as the future paintbrush and paint master turned three, his family moved to the French capital.
"Dancing in Bugivar" (1883)
During his studies at the school that Renoir began in 1848, he surprised the teachers with his absolute tone and beautiful voice.
Self-portrait. 1876
His teachers believed that he could be a great musician, but the boy had another hobby - he spent almost all of his free time painting. At the age of 13, he persuaded the master of porcelain painting to take him as an assistant. Soon, his most beautiful porcelain paintings amazed the entire workshop. In addition, the teenager works at an incredible pace, which allows him to earn a lot of money very quickly.
Portrait of actress Jenny Samari (1877-1878).
In 1862 he became a student at the prestigious Paris Academy of Fine Arts. In this educational institution he was the best student among the outstanding teachers Sinol and Greier, and back in 1864 he created a painting that could be exhibited at the Paris Salon.
In the last years of his life, he continued to work tirelessly
Since 1912 he was paralyzed and forced to move around in a wheelchair, but this did not become an obstacle to his creation: he kept painting, he tied the brush to his arm until the last day of his life - 1919, when the recognized talent was gone.
Two sisters (on the balcony) (1881)
About the life and work of "unusual" artists
It's hard to find another artist whose paintings can excite the viewer like many of the masters' works. What Renoir valued above all was the ideal of human society, in which all represented lives were regarded as the highest value.
The Frog 1869
Many do not understand the "strange" behavior of this genius, because what everyone is after - luxurious castles, the best cars, stylish furniture, all this is "poverty" for him. The artist, who needed nothing, once bought a famous estate only because the olive grove near the building was threatened with deforestation.
"Spring Bouquet" (1866)
As a very rich man, he "showed off" in the same suit for 10 years, the waiters could not wait for his tip, and no one saw him in first class. At the same time, he could not refuse the pleas of ordinary people, and did not hesitate to pay a lot of money to try to make up for the losses of the poor who interceded with him. Unfortunately, the artist's goodwill is exploited by various scammers.
Pink and Blue, 1881
Renoir's curiosity led him to experiment with the most interesting painting style, although he was one of the main representatives of Impressionism. For a time, he devoted himself to studying everything related to the art of the Renaissance masters. Renoir was once fascinated by the work of artists such as Raphael and Ingres.
"Apples and flowers" 1895
Shortly before the end of the 19th century, Renoir's paintings, filled with a greater sense of softness, a certain roughness of emphasis, became extraordinarily charming – the masters of the time experimented with many transitions of smooth contrasting colors.
"The Raddler's Breakfast" (1880-1881)
Degas was offended, and he thought Renoir's joke was unacceptable
In the art world of the time, it was difficult to find a friendlier person than Auguste Renoir. The artist, who had many friends, also maintained friendly relations with Edgar Degas, who had given Degas a wonderful landscape painting and Degas a pastel depicting a horse.
"Moulin Rouge Ball" (1876)
After the trial of Captain Dreyfus, who was of Jewish descent and accused of treason, a social conflict broke out in the country, dividing the French into two camps - some considered the accusation fair, others strongly opposed it.
"The Girl Who Played the Piano" (1892)
Nor did the artists stand idly by and actively express their opinions, for example, Degas supported those who agreed with the impartiality of the court case, while Pizarro (who also had Jewish roots), Gauguin, Cézanne, Guillauming and others opposed it.
Lady in the Sun 1876
Renoir, who absolutely does not care about politics, does not have nationalist ideas in his head, does not want to be adjacent to any one or the other, thinking that all this is nonsense. When Pizarro invited Renoir to his exhibition, Degas thought that Renoir would not go there and wanted to be sure of this, so he asked him a question. Renoir replied with a laugh that he was so afraid of his fame that he would not appear in the exhibition of these "Jewish traitors".
"The Young Girl with Hair" (1894)
Degas, the unsociable misanthrope, thinks Renoir is making fun of him, and he can't stand it.
Although both are far from stupid people, they failed to reconcile, which once again confirms an observation - the more ridiculous the quarrel, the more difficult it is to reconcile.