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Pierre-August Renoir (1841-1919)

Pierre-Auguste Renoir is born on 25 February 1841 in the French city Limoges. His family moves to Paris in 1844, and so he is raised in the French capitol. Fourteen years old, he becomes a porcelain painter apprentice. He shows great talent and actually continues porcelain painting throughout his entire life.

At the age of nineteen, Renoir is permitted to copy the famous paintings of the Louvre. Here he learns the masters' techniques, and also gets educated in art. He works at the Louvre for four years, and at the same time he takes painting classes in a studio. At the studio Renoir works with Monet, Sisley, and Bazille. Therefore, this time is highly important for his development as a true impressionist. In 1874 he takes part in the first impressionist exhibition, and after that, he becomes more and more commercially successful.

The style he develops is unique: He uses the "instantaneous" style of the other impressionists and adds what he has learned from his years at the Louvre. Most important is the treatment of light and reflections of light in water, trees and grass. Examples of this fortunate combination can be seen in his paintings of bathers and people walking in the sunshine.

In 1883 he holds his first solo exhibition, and then continues painting all his life. The last twenty years he is crippled by arthritis, but with a paintbrush attached to his arm, he still manages to paint. On 3 December 1919, Renoir dies in a small village in southern France.

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