Luncheon of the Boating Party

I have this on my wall at work and in my home above my couch. The one at home is double matted and framed so it is gorgeous!!! I just love this print and I really do love Renoir's work. Well, a lady a work asked me about it the other day and why I like it and I started pointing out different items in painting that she probably has never paid attention to before as she walks in and out of my office a dozen times a day.
Lucky for you, now you shall appreciate the piece too. (You don't have to LIKE it, but you can appreciate it.)

Luncheon of the Boating Party by Pierre-Auguste Renoir and it currently can be found in Washington D.C. The painting represents Renoir's friends on a balcony along a river in France. This scene captures the leisurely mood, but also reflects the character of mid- to late-nineteenth century French social structure. The restaurant welcomed customers of many classes including businessmen, upper class women, artists, actresses, writers, and seamstresses (mostly because of the industrial revolution and shorter work weeks).

Impressionism is the category of this painting and often gives the viewer the impression that it is quickly painted and spontaneous. This is often the opposite of what really happens. Impressionist paintings are characterized by visible brush strokes and emphasis on light. In this painting you can see how Renoir has varied his brush strokes from fine specific details of faces to the lighter brush strokes of the scenery in the background.

The people in the painting all have a significance starting with the lady on the bottom left holding the dog. She is a seamstress and Renoir later marries her. The man behind her rents out boats.
The man in the white tank top in the bottom right is the artist Gustave Caillebotte. The woman in the blue dress next to him was an actress.

This painting went through a lot of changes and additions. The most talked about is the addition of the red and white awning. This really helped to achieve the three dimensional illusion and closeness of the group. The painting was done in stages, some at the restaurant, and some with each friend in his studio.

Ok, so I could go on and on and on - but I won't. After really looking at it, doesn't it just look like a place that is relaxing but fun? It looks like a place you would want to be a "bug on the wall" and just observe because the conversations just look interesting. You can almost smell the fresh air with the hint of water. The weather looks perfect and view looks gorgeous. Sometimes I wish I could just be inside those paintings........

I know, I'm a dork.