PIERRE-AUGUSTE RENOIR

Readers learn in this pithy entry in the First Impressions series that one of today’s most popular of the Impressionist painters was, in his lifetime, rejected from exhibitions and often struggled to make ends meet. Rayfield follows Renoir from his youth and his first job painting ceramics, to his old age, when his hands were so crippled with arthritis he could barely hold a brush. Although young readers may be more familiar with his early works (and his affiliation with painters such as Monet and CÇzanne), he continued to paint until his death. He experimented with new styles, and created many later portraits of his wife and children. Excellent and abundant full-color reproductions accompany the text, as well as black-and-white photographs of the artist and his home. The book includes commentary from Renoir’s son, filmmaker Jean Renoir, as well as recollections from the painter and his friends. (index) (Biography. 10-15)