Bather IV by Auguste Renoir

Within the Impressionist movement, this poetic study of the female body celebrates the academic nude renewed by a modern sensitivity. The painter chooses to integrate the model directly into a wild and benevolent nature. The painting designated by the title “Bather IV” demonstrates Auguste Renoir’s constant passion for the harmony of anatomical forms. The composition conveys an impression of original purity and absolute serenity.

A young fully nude woman is seated in profile on a white cloth placed near the ground. Her long light auburn hair with golden highlights cascades freely down her back and chest. She leans slightly forward, her arms resting on her knees as she adjusts a pale drapery over her thighs. Her extremely gentle face displays a delicate profile and half-closed eyes lost in tranquil meditation. The flesh of her body captures pinkish tones and light colored shadows. All around her, a lush green undergrowth creates a background of great botanical richness.

Auguste Renoir’s virtuosity is expressed in the pearlescent treatment of the skin and the fluidity of the body lines. He masters to perfection the nuances of the palette to suggest the warmth of flesh under filtered light. The supple brushwork gives the scene great tactile softness.