PIERRE-AUGUSTE RENOIR French, 1841-1919 Femme nue couchée (Tournée à droite) (Nude Woman Lying Down, Turned to the Right) etching Etching on paper and likely a later impression from the original plate. Framed. Not examined out of frame. Image size: 5 1/8 x 7 ½ inches; frame: 13 x 15 inches $250-350
ARTIST PROFILE: Pierre-Auguste Renoir was a central figure of the French Impressionist movement, celebrated for his vibrant use of light and saturated color to depict scenes of beauty and leisure. Born into a working-class family of artisans in Limoges, he began his career at age 13 as an apprentice porcelain painter, a background that likely influenced the luminous, porcelain-like skin tones of his later portraits. In the 1860s, while studying under Charles Gleyre, he befriended Claude Monet, and together they pioneered the technique of using broken brushstrokes and colored shadows to capture the fleeting effects of sunlight en plein air. Renoir is perhaps best known for his "joy of life" (joie de vivre), choosing to focus on cheerful subjects like bustling Parisian cafes, sun-dappled gardens, and soft, monumental nudes, famously stating that "a picture should be something pleasant, cheerful, and pretty." Notable works such as Bal du moulin de la Galette (1876) and Luncheon of the Boating Party (1881) showcase his mastery of group composition and shimmering textures. Even as severe rheumatoid arthritis crippled his hands in his final years, Renoir continued to paint with a brush strapped to his fingers, remaining dedicated to his vision of beauty until his death at age 78.
