By the Seashore by Renoir: A Portrait Against the Waves

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A young woman above the sea

A young woman sits in a wicker chair on a terrace above the sea, crocheting. Behind her, waves roll towards white cliffs. Pierre-Auguste Renoir painted By the Seashore in 1883.

The painting belongs to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.

A smooth face, a loose background

Young woman’s face with blue eyes under a blue lace-trimmed bonnet — A smooth, carefully modelled face.

Her face is painted with soft, careful modelling: blue eyes, pink cheeks, a slight smile. She wears a blue bonnet trimmed with white lace and has curly brown hair.

The model is often thought to be Aline Charigot, who later became Renoir’s wife, though this is not certain.

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By the Seashore, painted by hand

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Busy hands

Hands holding a crochet hook and white needlework — Busy hands at her needlework.

Her hands rest in her lap, holding a crochet hook and white needlework. The lace is painted in quick white strokes that catch the light.

Sea and cliffs in quick strokes

Waves in blue and green strokes before white cliffs and small sails — Sea and cliffs in quick strokes.

The background is painted in rapid, feathery strokes of blue, green and white, with pale cliffs and tiny sails on the horizon. It is much freer than the figure.

Curved wicker armchair and dark blue skirt — The wicker chair.

The contrast between the smooth, finished face and the loose background reflects Renoir’s shift in the early 1880s. After a trip to Italy, he wanted firmer, more classical figures, while keeping Impressionist light around them.

Questions about By the Seashore

Where is the original?

The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.

Who is the woman?

Possibly Aline Charigot, Renoir’s future wife, though the identification is not certain.

When was it painted?

In 1883.

How large is it?

About 92.1 × 72.4 centimetres, oil on canvas.

Sources and image credit

Public-domain reproduction of By the Seashore (1883), via Wikimedia Commons. Detail images are crops of the same historical painting; no reconstruction or upscaling.