Essay - The Luncheon of the Boating Party Pierre Auguste Renoir Pierre-auguste...

The Luncheon of the Boating Party

Pierre Auguste Renoir

Pierre-***** Renoir saw an abundance of beautiful things in the world and his pa*****tings expressed a never-ending sense of joy and discovery. With his brilliant use ***** natural light and color, he shows the extraordinary splendor of everyday life. A prime example of the artist's ability to capture the joy of a single moment on canvas can be seen in The Luncheon ***** ***** Boating Party. This painting depicts the carefree gathering of French revelers, having just concluded a convivi*****l meal. Renoir recreates the beauty ***** the river scene with the posing of models, all friends of ***** artist; his use ***** vibrant ***** applied in small brush strokes ***** recreate natural light and a richness in texture, and his use of contrast*****g white with black. All these elements come together to show one of *****'s greatest pleasures; the joy of eating ***** drinking with friends.

This painting marks ***** culmination of Renoir's Impressionist period, from 1873 to 1880. During this time he lived in an attic apartment ***** t***** Montmartre section of Paris, having many friends but little money. He once insisted on the price of 425 francs for a p*****inting, as this was the exact amount he owed for rent. Yet it ***** a wonderful time, when his artistic genius flourished ***** the support of fellow artists ***** ***** Impressionist movement, among them Claude Monet. Alfred Sisley, and Edouard Manet. ********** persevered with their new technique of dabbing the color on ***** canvas in small dots to create their paintings, undeterred by the ridicule ***** c*****temporary art critics. After ***** disastrous exhibition of 1876, when they did not even sell enough paintings ***** cover expenses, ***** critic Albert Wolf wrote this scathing review: "Try to bring M. Renoir to reason; tell him about drawing, color, execution, purpose, and he will laugh in your face. Try to explain to *****. Renoir that woman's torso is not a mass ***** decomposing flesh, with violet-toned green spots all over it, indicating a corpse, in the l*****st stages of decay." (Renoir, 159). ***** responded by prophetically declar*****g that the *****s were always mistaken and *****y should worry only if the critics had praised them. (Renoir, p 159)

Painting the seemingly casual ***** depicted in The Luncheon of the ***** Party was a huge undertaking for the artist. ***** felt that he was attempting a work that was perhaps beyond his powers, and he took many months to complete it. T***** large canvas (51 inches ***** 68 inches) includes several detailed portra*****s, an intricate still life and a landscape; any one ***** these segments could have been the subject of a ***** *****. M***** of ***** friends and models can be recognized in ***** group, including his future wife Aline Charigot, in the left foreground holding a puppy. One of the models, Baron Barbier also served as a stage manager for the *****t, getting boats for ***** background and rounding up *****. (Renoir, 211).