Renoir in the 20th Century – LACMA

My girlfriend and I had the opportunity to view this exhibition. I know everyone says it, but art history books don’t compare to being surrounded by his work and sculpture.

Fyi: a spot-​on article about this exhibit
as it now opens in Philadelphia:
Thx, Paul L

Didn’t really do much for me.
It’s a nice thought to go against the grain and attempt to highlight a period in the artist’s life that is conventionally overlooked or not held in such high regard, but Renoir’s decision to break away stylistically from the movement that made him famous is questionable. Clearly, as he got older he wanted his style to transition with him into something that he considered more dignified and mature, recalling the masters of a past age. The problem? Those masters already conquered that territory. We’ve seen this already, and far better. This gallery is full of portraits, nude women, a few refreshing landscapes and lots of frankly uninteresting images from Renoir’s domestic life: his kids dressed in funny costumes; his wife holding his son; his nanny sitting around trying to look sensual and thoughtful.
Obviously it’s an easy thing for me to say what Renoir should or should not have done when a veil of 90 years of history and criticism separates us. By all means, the artist should and must do what he thinks is best for his art. Who are we to judge?
Well, we are museum goers! That’s why we judge and from my perspective, viewing these paintings in this awesome new wing of LACMA, there wasn’t much that jumped out at me. The female nudes are the focal point of the exhibit and they tend to look like, I thought, bloated gigantors. One of them had humungous catchers mitts for hands that probably could have powered a steam boat, and many of them had thunderously dangerous looking thighs that I wouldn’t allow near my head even if you paid me $ 1,000,000 and gave me a lifetime pass to Sizzler. Their bellies are without exception plump and soft and rounded into the classic symbolism of fertility, but even the exquisite softness of the shapes did very little for me. Interesting to look at and see, but nothing special.
My favorite part was a short silent film containing moving images of Renoir working. He had arthritis so make sure you check out his hands; they are as crooked as a pair of deformed bird feet. Also, there is a striking self-​portrait of Renoir showing a bearded man with a piercing gaze. He may have spent the last few decades of his life attempting to paint something that would transcend the youthful ambitions of his past, but his most interesting subject in this exhibit ended up being the artist himself.

one of my recurring new years’ resolutions is to spend more time in the arts. i was an art minor in undergrad, and that time in the studio was among the happiest of my life.
with such a limited art background, however, i tend to appreciate well-​structured exhibits that almost border on the obvious. whereas a more knowledgeable patron of the arts might look at the descriptions and say «duh,» i’m more likely to say «ohhhhhh, how cool.»
i actually saw a renoir exhibit years ago at the smithsonian, and while it had an amazing representation of all of his best work, it did little to describe the various phases of renoir’s life as an artist.
the excellently curated exhibit at LACMA actually walks you through the latter years of his life, as he started to move away from the very fundamentals of impressionism that he himself helped to create. i really liked how LACMA included other pieces by contemporaries such as picasso so that you could see how renoir’s work influenced theirs.
and if you have a sharp eye (which i don’t, it was pointed out to me), you can even glimpse a rendering of a degas ballerina pastel on the wall of renoir’s painting of the two sisters at the piano. evidently many of europe’s leading painters at the time used to go visit and be inspired by renoir’s estate in the south of france that he lived at toward the end of his life. the landscapes he painted from this period are among my favorite.
a great exhibit that does for me what art is meant to do: inspire.
the renoir exhibit requires special tickets for $ 20 that also give you admission to the rest of the museum, so make sure to order online for a specific time. and note that this exhibit documents the latter portion of his life, and does not include his more famous paintings such as the garden dance parties or girl with a watering can which were earlier works.
LACMA is obviously going through a lot of changes with its new curator, with impressive temporary exhibits such as this one and the resident modern exhibits in the broad building, but the old buildings with the resident ancient and classical exhibits are looking sadly neglected and hopefully are up for a revitalization soon.