The Boating Party Lunch/ Auguste Renoir

Artist

Renoir's painting satisfies the fantasies we have about leisure activities of the Parisian life in the Impressionist age. The sun-filled , genial image of casual socialability in the painting is such that the viewer equally participates in the scene. Besides, the visual impact is greater when we consider the kind of richness of form,  fluidity of brush stroke, and a flickering light that governs the painting.

The diagonal of the railing serves to demarcate the two halves of the composition, one densely packed with figures, the other all but empty, save for the two figures of the proprietor's daughter Louise-Alphonsine Fournaise and her brother, Alphonse Fournaise, Jr, which are made prominent by this contrast. In this painting Renoir has captured a great deal of light. The main focus of light is coming from the large opening in the balcony, beside the large singleted man in the hat. The singlets of both men in the foreground and the table-cloth all work together to reflect this light and send it through the whole composition.

The painting shows a group of Renoir's friends enjoying that supreme delight of a day out. Renoir shows us inter-relationships: notice the young man intent upon the girl at the right chatting, while the girl at the left is occupied with her puppy. We also notice, the loneliness, however relaxd, that can be part of anyone's experience at a lunch party. The man behind the girl and her dog is lost in a world of his own, yet we cannot but believe that his reverie is a happy one. The delightful debris of the meal, the charm of the young people, the hazy brightness of the world outside - all communicate an earthly paradise.