Reclining Nude (Femme nue couchée)

Discussion

FROM THE BARNES FOUNDATION’S CATALOG

Renoir painted the nude figure obsessively, especially during the later decades of his career, when he had turned away from impressionism. Here, as in so many of his canvases, Renoir idealizes the figure, emphasizing her gently curving contours and unblemished skin. Her body is turned toward the viewer so as to supply uninterrupted visual pleasure. Cradled by the landscape, the subject comes across not so much as a real person but as a fantasy of woman and nature in perfect harmony.

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