The French Collecion: Auguste Renoir - Lovers | Highlights from the NGP

In 1918, at the close of World War I, Czechoslovakia – the predecessor to today’s Czech Republic – came into being. The young state wanted to play an important role not only on the political, but also cultural map of Europe. That is why five years after its formation, in 1923, the government decided to make a large ac-quisition of French art. This acquisition today forms the core of the so-called French Collection of the National Gallery Prague.

Czech artists had been in touch with the French cultural milieu since the second half of the 19th century. Their contacts even intensified at the beginning of the 20th century with several highly important exhibitions of French art held in Prague. These activities were eventually interrupted by World War I and so the exhibition French Art of the 19th and 20th centuries did not take place in Prague until 1923. At this exhibition, eleven paintings and ten sculptures were selected for the intended state acquisition. A special committee was set up to travel to Paris where its members chose an additional 27 artworks – paintings, sculptures and works on paper – to form part of the French collection. The state provided five million Czechoslovak crowns for this acquisition, which at that time represented a rather exorbitant amount. This amount was even increased by one million crowns in order to acquire one valuable painting. Which one – we shall see shortly. Works by out standing artists such as Henri Matisse, Paul Gauguin, Paul Cézanne, George Seurat, Vincent van Gogh, and of course also Claude Monet, entered the collection. As I have already mentioned, the amount earmarked for the state acquisition was increased by one million Czechoslovak crowns in order to purchase one exceptional work.

Auguste Renoir Lovers 1875

It was this work by Auguste Renoir – the painting Lovers from 1875. It is a masterpiece of French Impressionism, the art movement of the second half of the 19th century. Originally, “impressionism“ was a derisive term because the artists were blamed for leaving their works unfinished. Impressionist painters were fascinated by the momentary, fleeting moment. They were interested in light and its changes at different times of the day. They went painting in the open air, used bright colours and short, quick brush strokes.

All these attributes can be found in the painting by Auguste Renoir. Unlike his fellow artists, Renoir never lost interest in the human figure. In this painting, he positioned the figures of lovers in nature, under the trees. He used his friends – a French actress and a painter – as models. The lady wears a blue robe typical of the period fashion. She has taken off her hat, which implies a relaxed moment. On the whole the painting is rendered in a highly dynamic manner. Colour spots alternate quickly, imitating the flickering light that penetrates the treetops. The generous state acquisition was also meant to demonstrate the relationship between Czechoslovakia and France in the field of official cultural policy.