愛藝

Renoir and Claude Monet were the two most daring innovators among the Impressionists and between them existed a close， lifelong friendship. At the time this picture was painted， Renoir often stayed at the Monet house in Argenteuil， a small community near Paris， on the Seine. The two men painted many pictures there， often setting up easels side by side. As a result of their and other Impressionists pictures， Argenteuil will have a lasting renown in the annals of art as a proving ground for Impressionist theories.

On one occasion Edouard Manet joined the two friends. He was working on a picture of Mme. Monet and her son， with Monet in the background. From time to time he glanced at Renoir， who had also set up an easel. At an opportune moment， he drew Monet aside and， making what is one of the worst wrong guesses in history， said： “Youre a good friend of Renoirs. Why dont you tell him to give up painting？ You can see hell never get anywhere.”

Amusingly enough， Renoir at this time was considerably under the influence of Manets painting， which he admired for its terse clarity， its boldness of attack， and its elimination of shadow. The plate opposite is very Manet-like， and shows these characteristics.

It is really a study in instantaneous vision： in every respect the canvas exemplifies the attempt to strip painting to what is caught in a fleeting glimpse. Mme. Monet， at her ease on the couch， looks up momentarily from her reading; the artist， in a stenographic manner， notes the main color areas and shapes. There is almost no modeling; sharp contrasts of color and value establish features， hair， and details of the costume. The figure cuts across the canvas on a diagonal; one half is the thriftiest possible indication of pillows and wall， the other half is given to sketchy details and more assertive color. The picture has grace， air， vivacity， and complete assurance： a veritable tour de force.

雷諾阿和克勞德·莫奈是印象派畫家中最勇于創(chuàng)新的兩位。他們二人親密無間，友情延續(xù)了一生。創(chuàng)作此畫的那段日子，雷諾阿常常待在莫奈在阿讓特伊的住處。阿讓特伊是巴黎附近的一個小鎮(zhèn)，位于塞納河畔。他們倆在那里畫了很多畫，創(chuàng)作時常把畫架并排擺放。正是包括他們在內的一些印象派畫家的畫作讓阿讓特伊后來名垂藝術史，那里因成為印象派各種理論的試驗場而聞名。

有一次，愛德華·馬奈和他倆在一起。馬奈在為莫奈夫人和她兒子畫像，他還把莫奈畫在了背景里。他時不時瞥一眼雷諾阿，雷諾阿也已架好了畫架。馬奈找了個機會把莫奈拉到一邊，說出了心里的想法，這想法可算史上最離譜的：“你跟雷諾阿這么要好，為什么不勸勸他放棄畫畫呢？我看他在這一行不會有什么成就的。”

有意思的是，雷諾阿當時深受馬奈繪畫的影響，他很欣賞馬奈作品運筆簡練明快、處理大膽奔放，還不畫陰影。畫中莫奈夫人對面的盤子就很有馬奈之風，顯露了這些特點。

這幅畫其實是瞬時視覺的一幅習作：從各方面看，此畫都表明了畫家試圖用畫筆呈現瞬間一瞥所捕捉到的事物。莫奈夫人舒服地躺坐在長沙發(fā)上，她正在看報，突然抬起頭看了一眼。雷諾阿以簡潔的筆觸描繪主色塊和輪廓。畫面幾乎沒有立體感;色彩對比鮮明，層次清晰，勾勒出人物的容貌、頭發(fā)和服裝的細節(jié)。莫奈夫人的形象呈對角線斜跨畫面：上半截是極簡呈現的靠枕和墻壁;下半截是粗略呈現的細節(jié)和更加厚重的色彩。這幅畫雅致有格調，透著一絲活潑和十足的自信——確確實實是一幅杰作。