Bathers in a Forest
1895/97
Medium
Graphite on tan wove paper, laid down on ivory Japanese paper
Dimensions
63.8 × 94.4 cm (25 1/8 × 37 3/16 in.)
Classification
prints and drawing
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
186400
Art Historical Context
Step into the sun-dappled world of Pierre-Auguste Ren's *Bathers in a Forest (1895/97), a captivating graphite drawing on tan wove paper, meticulously laid down on ivory Japanese for preservation. Measuring an impressive 63.8 × 94.4 cm, this large-scale work from the Art Institute of Chicago's Prints Drawings department showcases Renoir's lifelong fascination with the female nude in harmonious communion with nature. As a cornerstone of French Impressionism, Renoir light, color, and the sensuous human form throughout his career. By the mid-1890s, he increasingly turned to drawings and pastels,...
About the Artist
Pierre-Auguste Renoir · 1841–1919
Pierre-Auguste Renoir (1841-1919) was a founding figure of Impressionism whose luminous depictions of Parisian leisure, sensuous female forms, and sun-dappled landscapes made him one of the most beloved painters in Western art history. Born in Limoges to a working-class family, Renoir began as a porcelain painter before pursuing fine arts, and this early craft experience gave him facility with the...