American & European Art

This lot will be included in the forthcoming Renoir Digital Catalogue Raisonné, currently being prepared under the sponsorship of the Wildenstein Plattner Institute, Inc. It is also accompanied by a copy of a photo-certificate issued by François Daulte, dated July 24, 1984.

Provenance:

The Artist

Galerie Durand-Ruel, Paris, acquired from the Artist, October 26, 1901 (stock no. 6753)

Paul Cassirer, Berlin, acquired from the above, July 7, 1911

Marie Harriman Gallery, New York, acquired from the above

Eddie Duchin, New York, acquired from the above, c. 1930

Private Collection, by descent from above, 1951

Robert H. Everitt, Madrid, by descent from above, as of 1980

Sold: Hôtel Président, Geneva, May 7, 1984, Lot 127

Daniel Varenne, Geneva, acquired at the above sale

Island Weiss Gallery, New York

Acquired from the above by the present owner, June 21, 2001

Exhibited:

Paris, Galerie Durand-Ruel, Tableaux par A. Renoir, June 1902, no. 4 (as Villefranche)

Dresden, Kunstsalon Ernst Arnold, Ausstellung von Gemälden französischer Künstler, September 5 - 30, 1902, no. 29 (as Blick auf Villa Franca)

Lot note:

Renoir first traveled to the south of France in 1882, to visit fellow artist and friend Paul Cézanne in Aix-en-Provence. His discovery of the region and its surroundings – including further south towards the French Riviera – bathed in sunlight, had a strong impact on the artist’s palette, offering him a whole new range of luminous color tones. Renoir frequently returned to the area and began to make extended stays in 1898/99, partly to alleviate his rheumatoid arthritis, but also because the vibrant landscape presented an opportunity to further develop his integration of Classicism and Impressionism. The Arcadian views provided an infinite source of inspiration for the artist in his final years.