Pierre-Auguste RenoirFrench, 1841–1919The Bathers
Can I see it?
Unknown
Where is “The Bathers” now? Collection: Musée d'Orsay, Paris. Unknown.
Paris, France
The owner is known; whether it is on view today is not.
- In this state since
- Source
- The museum
About the painting
The Bathers (French: Les Baigneuses) is an oil painting on canvas made between 1918 and 1919 by the French painter Pierre-Auguste Renoir. After being given to the State by his three sons in 1923, it is currently kept at the Musée d'Orsay in Paris. It is representative of Renoir's late work period (1892–1919).
The painting depicts two groups of nude women: two lying in the foreground and three bathers in the background to the right. One of the models of this painting is Andrée Hessling, who became the first wife of Renoir's son, Jean. The natural setting displayed in the painting was the large garden of the house owned by the painter in Cagnes-sur-Mer.
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In the painting, Renoir removed any reference to the contemporary world and showed "a timeless nature". The theme of the bather is predominant in the final season of Renoir's paintings: the women portrayed by the painter are free and uninhibited. These bathers are "melted in the nature and the forms merge with the trees, flowers and the shares of red water".
The painting received criticism because of "the enormousness of the legs and arms, the weakness of flesh, and the pinkish color of the models".
Details
- Accession number
- RF 2795
In the catalog
Sources
- Wikidata
- Image: Musée d'Orsay — Pierre Auguste Renoir (1841 - 1919) – Painter (French) Born in Limoges. Died in Cagnes-sur-Mer. Details on Google Art Project · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons
In the life of Pierre-Auguste Renoir
The whole life1917
"The Umbrellas" at the National Gallery in London
When "The Umbrellas" was exhibited alongside the old masters, hundreds of British artists and art lovers sent Renoir their congratulations, noting that a contemporary had taken his rightful place in European painting.
19 February 1919 · Award
Commander of the Legion of Honour
August 1919
Last visit to Paris
Renoir came to Paris for the last time to look at his painting on display in the Louvre.
November 1919
Final illness: working to the end
In late November Renoir fell ill with pneumonia but kept working: on 1 December he sat for the sculptor Gimond and painted a still life with apples, and the next day a still life with anemones. In his delirium he asked for a palette to paint two snipes.
3 December 1919
Died
