Monday, August 16, 2004
Luncheon of the Boating Party
Pierre-Auguste Renoir (1841-1919)
Luncheon of the Boating Party, 1880-1881
Oil on canvas
Ever since the first time I saw this painting, I wondered "what's the deal with these guys in their undershirts?" Everybody else is wearing long sleeves, coats and ties, etc., but here are these two lounging about in their straw hats and wife-beaters.
The following doesn't really make them stand out any more than they already do, it's just an excuse for me to mess around in the Gimp:
One can't help but envy these fellows, who also do things like sitting backwards on chairs while talking to women with small dogs. They strut their comparatively-shirtless stuff with reckless abandon. The one in the left seems to be looking off into space at no one in particular, or just plain posing for the "camera".
Finally, after wondering about this for about 20 years, this page gives some explanations about these people, who were actual friends of the artist.
Luncheon of the Boating Party, 1880-1881
Oil on canvas
Ever since the first time I saw this painting, I wondered "what's the deal with these guys in their undershirts?" Everybody else is wearing long sleeves, coats and ties, etc., but here are these two lounging about in their straw hats and wife-beaters.
The following doesn't really make them stand out any more than they already do, it's just an excuse for me to mess around in the Gimp:
One can't help but envy these fellows, who also do things like sitting backwards on chairs while talking to women with small dogs. They strut their comparatively-shirtless stuff with reckless abandon. The one in the left seems to be looking off into space at no one in particular, or just plain posing for the "camera".
Finally, after wondering about this for about 20 years, this page gives some explanations about these people, who were actual friends of the artist.
