Paul Delvaux

Les Belles de Nuit

For Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Impressionism's pre-eminent figure painter, depicting the nude was an exercise in bringing the canvas to life. He once said, “I look at a nude, I see myriads of minuscule shades. I have to find those which will make the flesh on my canvas come to life and resonate.” This compelling portrait by Renoir entitled Après le bain presents the nude figure of a woman in a serene, private moment, absorbed in the task of drying herself after a bath. The artist’s mastery of light and shading is incredible, achieving a sense of vitality in this otherwise ordinary scene. Renoir is celebrated for his figural work, especially his Rubenesque female nudes, however, it was not until the artist was in his forties that he depicted the nude with any frequency. In 1881, Renoir traveled to Italy, where he studied the works of the Renaissance masters and the ancient art of Pompeii and Rome. Upon his return to France, the nude became his favored subject, and he used the motif to combine the spontaneity of Impressionism with the solid modeling of classical painting. Renoir’s medium here, sanguine, a reddish-brown chalk, was used extensively in the Renaissance by Leonardo (who employed it in his sketches for the Last Supper), Michelangelo and Raphael. Its warm hue lends itself well to depicting flesh, and the chalk drawing allows for a greater focus on line, form and texture in a departure from the aspects of color and light that so often preoccupied the Impressionists. Après le bain conveys the impression of arrested motion with perfect naturalness, deftly capturing the moment before the elegant lines of the sitter's form change position. The sitter is almost certainly Gabrielle Renard, the nanny to Renoir’s children and a frequent model for the artist. Gabrielle was the cousin of Renoir’s wife, Aline, and came to Montmartre to work for the family at the age of 16. She developed a strong bond with the family and became a favorite subject for Renoir, appearing in several of his most important works, including his 1911 Gabrielle with a Rose (Musée d'Orsay). When Renoir began to suffer from severe rheumatoid arthritis that would eventually leave him unable to walk and scarcely able to grasp a paintbrush, it was Gabrielle that would assist the artist by positioning the paintbrush between his crippled fingers. Born in Limoges, France in 1841, Renoir began his career as an apprentice to a painter of porcelain wares. He later moved to Paris at the age of 21, enrolling at the prestigious École des Beaux-Arts. It was here, while studying under Charles Gleyre, that Renoir attained a tremendous appreciation for the academic style of painting, a quality that would last throughout his career. This was also when he met Claude Monet and several other classmates, with whom he would later form the Impressionists. Working closely with Monet, Renoir began experimenting with the portrayal of light and its effect on his canvases. The youngest member of the Impressionist movement, an astute Renoir recognized how a subject was constantly changing due to the dynamic effects of light on color. Relying heavily upon his academic training that focused on composition, lines and descriptive details, Renoir distinguished himself among his contemporaries. His intuitive use of color and expansive brushstroke, along with acute attention to his subject, have placed him among the finest painters in history. This work is accompanied by a certificate of authenticity and will be included in the forthcoming catalogue raisonné of the work of Pierre-Auguste Renoir from the Wildenstein Plattner Institute. Circa 1898 Canvas: 43 1/2" high x 35 1/2" wide Frame: 57 3/4" high x 49 1/4" wide Provenance: Galerie Durand-Ruel, Paris (acquired from the artist on January 25, 1899) J. Pereire Collection, France (1966) Sam Salz, New York (before 1981) Claus Virch, Paris French Compagny, Inc., New York Larry Silverstein, New York (circa January 1987) Le Clos de Sierne Gallery, Geneva Galerie Heyram, Paris (October 1987) Francis Gross M.S. Rau, New Orleans Literature: B. Schneider, Renoir, Berlin, 1957, p. 95 (illustrated in color, p. 83) M. Gauthier, Renoir, Paris, 1958, p. 83 (illustrated in color; erroneously dated '1916' and titled 'Woman in her toilet') F. Fosca, Renoir, L'homme et son obra, Paris, 1961, p. 280 (illustrated, p. 95; erroneously dated 'about 1890' and titled 'After the Bath...

Henry Moret 1856-1913 French Barque de Peche en Mer Fishing Boat at Sea Signed and dated “Henry Moret 1912” (lower left) Oil on canvas A beautiful gestural composition imbued with the sublime beauty of the open sea, this oil on canvas by Impressionist Henry Moret showcases the artist's deft use of color and texture. One of the most celebrated painters of the Pont-Aven School, Moret’s lasting reputation is tied to his talent for capturing the bright skies, lively waterways and the diverse coastline of northern France. With a mastery of plein air composition and a deep appreciation for the natural world, Moret's Barque de Peche en Mer renders a fishing boat navigating through the ocean. Moret creates a visceral sense of the vitality of the water and the enormity of the open skies. The artist captures the vigorous energy of the sea with a profusion of green and blue hues applied with a thick impasto. Small yet mighty against the infinite backdrop, Moret's fishing boat forges ahead. Henry Moret was born in Cherbourg in 1856, though little else is known about his early life. He entered military service as a young man in 1875, and it was during that period when Moret discovered the beauty of France’s northern coasts, particularly those of Normandy and Brittany. After his tour ended, he embarked on his artistic career, completing his formal education at the École Nationale des Beaux-Arts under Jean-Leon Gérôme, and later, from about 1880, under Jean-Paul Laurens at the Académie Julian. He exhibited for the first time at the Paris Salon in 1880, submitting a landscape of the coast of Brittany. During his time in Paris, he frequently traveled to Brittany to paint the region he so loved. In 1888, he more firmly established himself in Pont-Aven, a town whose center had become an artistic refuge for artists such as the great Paul Gauguin, Ernest Ponthier de Chamaillard, Emile Jourdan and others. Under Gauguin's influence, he briefly explored the concept of Symbolism in his works, but after Gauguin left Pont-Aven in 1891, Moret returned to his Impressionist roots. He formed a relationship with the famed dealer Durand-Ruel in 1895, and his career was officially launched. Today, his works can be found in important museums including the Manchester Art Gallery, the State Hermitage Museum (St. Petersburg), the National Gallery of Art (Washington DC) and others. Dated 1912 Canvas: 28 3/4” high x 36 3/4” wide Frame: 36 5/8" high x 44 1/8" wide Exhibited:Henry Moret, Galerie Durand-Ruel, April 5-January 29, 1966, n° 47 Provenance: Sale Marcel Bernheim...

ANJA VAN HERLE "Zen Zone" Acrylic  on Wood 60 x 40 inches Born in Belgium in 1969, Anja Van Herle combines a European sense of high fashion in her artwork with an American sense of ...

Charlie Edmiston's work explores the boundaries of form, media, and color in a manner evocative of mid-century modernists. Where his predecessors' explorations are narrowing and subt...