The Phaidon Folio

How Relevant Is Renoir? See Five Impressionist Masterpieces That Echo Across the Ages

How Relevant Is Renoir? See Five Impressionist Masterpieces That Echo Across the Ages
Afro Muse by Mickalene Thomas, 2005

As we have seen with the works of Sandro Botticelli, the great artworks of the past still have an incredible hold on the present. The same can be said for Pierre-Auguste Renoir, one of the founding leaders of Impressionism. Known for his intimate figure paintings—especially of the female nude—and delightful portraits of Parisian socialites, Renoir has collected a cast of characters who still very much play a role in contemporary art today.

Drawn from Phaidon’s newly updated monograph Renoir in conjunction with the Artspace archives, these five pairs of Impressionist paintings and contemporary works (now available on Artspace) show the continued impression art of the 20th century has made on the 21st.

THE DANCER

THE DANCER
Pierre-Auguste Renoir
1874

The Dancer

PAULINA, UKRAINE, 2005
Michal Chelbin
2005

Michael Chelbin

THE MODEL/MUSE

BUST-LENGTH PORTRAIT OF A MODEL
Pierre-Auguste Renoir
1916

The Model

AFRO MUSE
Mickalene Thomas
2005

Mickalene Thomas

THE BATHERS

BATHING GROUP
Pierre-Auguste Renoir
1916

The Bathers

BATHED IN SUNLIGHT
Liu Xiaodong
2008

Liu Xiaodong

THE COUPLE

A COUPLE
Pierre-Auguste Renoir

c.1868

A Couple

YOUNG COUPLE ON A BENCH IN WASHINGTON SQUARE PARK, N.Y.C.
Diane Arbus
1965

Diane Arbus

THE CLOWN

THE CLOWN
Pierre-Auguste Renoir
1868

The Clown

UNTITLED (STUFFED ANIMALS CLOWN)
Cindy Sherman

2003

Cindy Sherman

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