Renoir’s “Le Moulin de la Galette” paints a picture perfect day
Image: http://blogs.princeton.edu/wri152-3/s06/mgawrys/images/renoir.moulin-galette.jpg.
Info: Bal du Moulin de la Galette, 1876, oil on canvas, 52” x 69”, Musee d’Orsay, Paris
Explanation: Impressionism, a movement that started in France in the late 19th century, was a total break from the rigid techniques and traditions of European paintings. The change centered around the idea of the now and involved the artist painting as quickly as possible in order to capture the moment as it was happening. This brought about the use of short brushstrokes of pure color (instead of long strokes with complex shades). Artists also encouraged the ideal of subjectivity rather than indifference – after all, the goal was to create a piece that showed the impression the scene made on the person viewing.
Many world-renowned (today) artists were Impressionists: Monet, Degas, and – of course – Renoir. Pierre Auguste Renoir was a leader in developing and popularizing the Impressionist movement, and Le Moulin de la Galette epitomizes this style.
This painting shows a typical Sunday afternoon at the Moulin de la Galette, a social area next to a windmill in France. Working-class Parisians would go to this area wearing fine clothing and spend the afternoons/evenings drinking, dancing and eating. The piece is intended to be a quick snapshot of the happenings.
In keeping with the Impressionist style, Renoir painted the lights and shadows as they fell on the people. Actions – like the couples dancing and the blonde girl talking to the boy on the bench – are frozen in time. The scene focuses on the girl in the striped dress – who is purported to be the sister of Renoir’s favorite model – and as the viewer’s eye travels backward, the faces become less distinct; eventually, people are just quick dots.
My opinion: Oh, Impressionism. This painting is so relaxing to me. Renoir has masterfully captured the atmosphere of the moment – easy, cool in the shade of the trees, careless – while still infusing the piece with so much energy.
I’m really into the idea of Impressionism in general because I think it’s such a legitimate concept. Capturing the moment in all its imperfect beauty is so much better than carefully orchestrating a posed painting. Even the medium lends itself to quick creation.
The dancing couples are moving in different directions, people are having separate conversations, customers are eating, and everything is just happening concurrently but it’s not at all frenzied. The shadows slow everything down. Viewing this piece is like being there, and it’s so wonderful to get lost in the moment.
To me, this is real art.
Sources: http://www.ibiblio.org/wm/paint/auth/renoir/moulin-galette/, http://www.huntfor.com/arthistory/c19th/impressionism.htm, http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/imml/hd_imml.htm, http://www.ibiblio.org/wm/paint/glo/impressionism/.
