Piere-Auguste Renoir: A Brief History

1394 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: The chrysanthemums character analysis

“Renoir’s particular ambition was to paint works in joyful hues from which all trace of narrative is excluded” 1, quotes Jean LeyMarie author of Renoir; And truer words about Renoir’s work can not be spoken. Pierre-Auguste Renoir was a French born painter whose collaborations with other notable artists, among them Manet, Delacroix, and Monet 2, helped to influence and shape the budding Impressionist movement. The renowned painter began his humble upbringing in Limoges, France in 1841; The son of a tailor, his parents found him work with a porcelain decorator, which was the beginning of his lengthy career as an artist, and perhaps were his passion for translucent and luscious colors were established 3. While Renoir is well known for his paintings of women, couples, and various other human subjects, his work on flowers is equally as impressive. The work this essay will discuss is the painting Chrysanthemums, painted in 1881-82. Currently located in the Ryerson Collection in Gallery 201 of the Art Institute of Chicago.
Chrysanthemums was painted in the middle years of Renoir’s career. It is a vibrant portrayal of a vase of chrysanthemums in a vase on a table, with a simple, yet poignant background. Although in today in France, chrysanthemums may symbolize bereavement and death 4, Renoir’s depiction is of a flourishing plant, teeming with life and activity. Renoir employs a cooler palate in this work; Blue greens and cool reds are used to create shadows, depth, and contrast to the painting which help to engage the viewer. The flowers sit comfortably in a vase on what appears to be a patterned white table cloth draped loosely over a small circular table. This painting is an excellent example of Renoir’s artistic style; His favor o...

... middle of paper ...

... uses depth to sink the vase into the back and burst the flowers into the foreground. He does employ contour hatching on the vase, it is apparent which way the vase bends by the way the strokes wrap around. The flowers and vase are clearly resting on top of the table. Renoir paints cast shadows on the table from the flowers, and also uses cast shadows on the red background to create a scene with believable depth on a flat surface. The use of shadows is especially noticeable in the flowers themselves, the bright blue indicates deeper and darker parts in the leafy stems.

Works Cited

(1) “Jean LeyMarie”, Renoir
Page 6 LeyMarie
Page 4 LeyMarie http://blog.couleurnature.com/the-flower-of-death/ Page 689 Gardner’s
Gardner’s 694 http://www.theartstory.org/movement-impressionism.htm 11 John House, Renoir
12“”
House, Renoir 12
House 65 La Promenade
House 64)
(LeyMarie 4)

Show More
Related

  • Good and Evil in Eudora Welty's A Worn Path and Flannery O'Conner's A Good Man is Hard to Find

    1137 Words  | 3 Pages

    Lehner, Ernst, and Johanna Lehner. Folklore and Symbolism of Flowers, Plants and Trees. New York: Tudor. 1960

    Read More

  • The Chrysanthemums Compare And Contrast

    835 Words  | 2 Pages

    The main character in John Steinback’s short story: The Chrysanthemums, is a married woman named Elisa Allen. She is a hardworking diligent young woman. In the opening chapters of The Chrysanthemums, Elisa is seen heartily in a great degree tendering to her gentle flowers. Powerful she is – gentle and conservative with her strength. She knows her weakness. Like the gentle calm flow of water embedding itself into layers of strata – which forms the highest peaks and grandest canyons.

    Read More

  • Living Inside The Fence You Create

    1169 Words  | 3 Pages

    Steinbeck, John. “The Chrysanthemums”. Literature: Reading Fiction, Poetry, Drama. 2nd ed. Ed. Robert DiYanni. New York: McGraw, 2008. 459-466. Print.

    Read More

  • Rachel Ruyschs' Still Life with Flowers on a Marble Tabletop

    849 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the early 16th century the Netherlands experienced what was called “tulip mania” this was the beginning of the nations love for flora and foliage (Taylor 13). The result of this impressive flower invasion was a society that took a historical turn from which the results still remain today. Flower merchants, botanists and floral still life artists, were occupations that were an accurate reflection of the Netherlands demands (Brown). An interesting example of a life that was effected by, and devoted to the archiving of the flower craze was Rachel Ruysch (1664-1750) the 17th century Dutch flower painter. Rachel Ruyschs’ career straddled the 17th and 18th century, and her stunningly accurate floral pieces reflect the maturing, yet evolving art of floral still life painting (“Rachel Ruysch: Bibliography”). Ruyschs’ Still Life with Flowers on a Marble Tabletop (1716) is an excellent example of a painting that appropriately represents the genre of art that was created solely through specific societal events.

    Read More

  • The Power of the Written Word: Literary Greats Paving the Way for Social Equality

    1276 Words  | 3 Pages

    Steinbeck, John. “The Chrysanthemums” Literature: An Introduction to Reading and Writing. Ed. Edgar V Roberts and Robert Zweig. 10th ed. New York: Pearson Longman, 2012. 416-422. Print.

    Read More

  • Calla Flowers Symbolism

    2122 Words  | 5 Pages

    During the Art Deco era the calla lily became one of the most popular flowers around. Whether in florist shops or on artist canvases the calla lily became a recurring theme. Like many flowers before it the calla lily came to be more than a flower on its own but it represented the idea of femininity. The calla lily was used by artists such as Tamara de Lempicka, Diego Rivera and Georgia O’Keeffe as a symbol of femininity and feminism. Through examining their works, in relation to their own lives and the events of the day, I will explore how the calla lily came to represent a new type on femininity and feminism.

    Read More

  • The Monkey Garden

    669 Words  | 2 Pages

    The first images of the garden are seen through the exaggerated imagination of a young child. “” are as “ as flowers on Mars,” and cockscombs “ the deep red fringe of theater curtains.” Fr...

    Read More

  • The Song of the Lark

    813 Words  | 2 Pages

    When first approaching this work, one feels immediately attracted to its sense of wonder and awe. The bright colors used in the sun draws a viewer in, but the astonishment, fascination, and emotion depicted in the expression on the young woman keeps them intrigued in the painting. It reaches out to those who have worked hard in their life and who look forward to a better future. Even a small event such as a song of a lark gives them hope that there will be a better tomorrow, a thought that can be seen though the countenance by this girl. Although just a collection of oils on a canvas, she is someone who reaches out to people and inspires them to appreciate the small things that, even if only for a short moment, can make the road ahead seem brighter.

    Read More

  • Use of Floral Imagery and Symbolism in Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray

    2716 Words  | 6 Pages

    Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray is, at first glance, a novel about a young, handsome man’s demise as he travels into a world of self- indulgence, immorality, and evil. Though the predominant motif of beauty versus ugliness is the main take-away point, Wilde’s use of symbols, particularly flowers cannot go unnoticed. From characterization to depicting religious allusions, flowers are frequently used in The Picture of Dorian Gray. Clearly, the novel’s use of roses, orchids, lilacs, and the like has an underlying meaning, which will be explored and analyzed in this essay.

    Read More

  • Monet

    1812 Words  | 4 Pages

    Claude Monet is one of the most familiar and best loved of all Western artists. His images of poppy fields, poplar trees, water lilies and elegant ladies in blossoming gardens are familiar to people who have never seen the original paintings and may never have visited an art gallery. Monet's works have won a place in the affection of the general public that seems almost without parallel. (Rachman, 4) In the decades since his death in 1926, Monet's work has been intensely studied by a variety of art critics. However, none of his works have been as deeply studied as those done in Giverny, in the early twentieth century. During this time Monet's paintings, which focused on specific subject matter from various viewpoints, became the most famous of his career and also the most analyzed, bringing forth a variety of different opinions.

    Read More

  • Literary Analysis Of The Wild Iris By Louise Gluck

    785 Words  | 2 Pages

    The theme throughout the poetry collection is the emotion of melancholy and the speaker speaking with a wise and philosophical tone. She has also used the repetition of nature and religion-based implications in her poems. Most of the poem titles is named after a specific plant because it fits in the meaning of her entire poem collection. The title of the poems hold symbolism because of the flower language. You can constantly see the cycle of rebirth through the beautiful description of a nonphysical form of a soul and develop into beautiful flowers in her garden. The vivid imagery of the flowers by describing the color and the personification of these living beings. She is also trying to explore the relationship between humans and their god. The poet is a gardener who tends to the flower and she prefer the flowers in her garden over her god, “knowing nothing of the

    Read More

  • Analysis Of The Swing By Fagonard

    940 Words  | 2 Pages

    Not only the painting was detailed, but also the colors enhances everything that is going on. By looking at the painting I was able to identify what was going on easily, which I thought was impressive. My second motive for wanting to choose The Swing by Renoir was because of how these two paintings are somewhat the same yet they have a totally different meanings. I was amazed by how two similar paintings could have two different meanings. For example, in both paintings we can clearly see the sunlight and in both paintings there are two men, one lady, one child, and couple of people in the background yet the meaning of both paintings are 100 percent different. My third and final motive was when looking at the paintings, I was able to understand that the painting of Fragonard was drawn in a rich society where you can see the swing is made with thick rope, and a luxurious red seat, and even the forest, the statue, and the clothes relates to rich society. However, in Renoir’s painting we can clearly see the total opposite, the figures in the painting seem like they are from an average society, and that the swing is made out of thin rope, and wood seat, the clothes, and the atmosphere represents an average

    Read More

  • Essay on Elisa's Unfulfilled Desire in John Steinbeck's The Chrysanthemums

    1249 Words  | 3 Pages

    Steinbeck, John. “Chrysanthemums.” Forty Short Stories: A Portable Anthology. Ed. Beverly Lawn. Boston: Bedford St. Martin’s, 2001.

    Read More

  • Pierre-Auguste Renoir 's The Umbrellas

    1666 Words  | 4 Pages

    Roy, A., Billinge, R., Riopelle, C. 'Renoir’s "Umbrellas" Unfurled Again'. National Gallery Technical Bulletin Vol 33, pp 73–81. , .

    Read More

  • Analysis of Olive Trees by Vincent Van Gogh

    714 Words  | 2 Pages

    ...f the shadows is sprinkled with the orange of the ground, and the blue-violet of the mountains is both mixed with and adjacent to the yellow of the sky. The brushstrokes that carry this out are inspired by the Impressionists, but are more abundant and blunter than those an Impressionist would use.

    Read More

More about Piere-Auguste Renoir: A Brief History

Open Document