Bather Arranging Her Hair

1885

Renoir painted this nude at a pivotal moment in his career. In the 1870s, the artist experimented with Impressionist techniques, dissolving figures and forms in the atmospheric effects of light and shadow. By the 1880s, the figures in his paintings had become more solid and better defined. This shift in style is visible in the smooth texture of the woman’s pearly skin and the crisp outline of the curves of her body set against a sketchy, vibrant background.

Medium	oil on canvas
Dimensions	36 3/16 x 28 3/4 in. (91.9 x 73 cm) Frame: 46 x 38 1/2 in. (116.8 x 97.8 cm)
Object Number	1955.589
Acquisition	Acquired by Sterling and Francine Clark before 1955
Status	On View

Image Caption

Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Bather Arranging Her Hair, 1885, oil on canvas. Clark Art Institute, 1955.589

Select Bibliography

Néret, Gilles. Renoir: Painter of Happiness 18411919. Cologne: Taschen GmbH, 2001. Paris: Galerie Rosenberg.. Exposition d'Oeuvres des Grands Maîtres du Dix-neuvième Siècle.. May 3-June 3, 1922.. New York: Durand-Ruel Galleries.. Masterpieces by Pierre Auguste Renoir.. Feb. 8-March 5, 1932.. Chicago Fine Arts Institute. A Century of Progress: Exhibition of Paintings and Sculpture. June 1-Nov. 1, 1933. Toronto: The Art Gallery of Toronto.. Paintings by Renoir and Degas.. Oct. 1934.. New York: Durand-Ruel Galleries.. Exhibition of Masterpieces by Renoir.. March 12-30, 1935.. New York: Durand-Ruel.. The Four Great Impressionists: Cézanne, Degas, Renoir, Manet, March 27-April 13, 1940. Cat. by Alfred Frankfurter. Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute.. Exhibit Six: Impressionist Paintings.. Opened Sept. 18, 1956.. Wildenstein & Company. An Exhibition of Treasures from the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, Williamstown, Massachusetts: Paintings, drawings & rare silver, for the benefit of the Committee to Rescue Italian Art, inc. (CRIA). Exhibition catalogue. New York: Wildenstein & Company, 1967. London: Hayward Gallery (Arts Council of Great Britain).. Renoir. Jan. 30-April 21, 1985; Grand Palais, Paris, May 14-Sept. 2, 1985; Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Oct. 9, 1985-Jan. 5, 1986. Catalogue by John House. Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute. List of Paintings in the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute. Williamstown, MA: Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, 1970. Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute. List of Paintings in the Sterling & Francine Clark Art Institute. Williamstown, MA: Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, 1972. Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute. List of Paintings in the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute. Williamstown, MA: Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, 1984. Kern, Steven, et al. A Passion for Renoir: Sterling and Francine Clark Collect, 19161951. Exhibition catalogue. New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., in association with the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, 1996 M. Berr de Turique.. Renoir.. Paris.. n.d.. Julius Meier-Graefe.. Entwicklungsgeschichte der Modern Kunst.. Stuttgart.. 1904.. Geffroy, Gustave. "Renoir, peintre de la femme". L'art et l'artiste, n.s. 1. Jan. 1920.. Julius Meier-Graefe.. Auguste Renoir.. Munich: R. Piper.. 1911.. Julius Meier-Graefe.. Auguste Renoir.. Paris.. 1912.. Coquiot, Gustave. Renoir. Paris: A. Michel. 1925. Henri de Regnier.. Renoir, Paintre du Nu.. Paris: Ed. Bernheim-Jeune.. 1923.. André, Albert. Renoir. Paris: Ed. G. Cres. 1928. Julius Meier-Graefe.. Renoir.. Leipzig: Klinkhardt & Biermann.. 1929.. Vollard, Ambroise. Renoir, An Intimate Record. New York: A. A. Knopf. 1925; 1934. Barnes, Albert C. and Violette de Mazia. The Art of Renoir. New York. 1935. George Besson.. Renoir.. Paris.. 1932.. Michel Drucker.. Renoir.. Paris: Ed. Pierre Tisné.. 1944.. John Rewald.. The History of Impressionism.. New York: The Museum of Modern Art.. 1946.. Ozenfant, Amedée. Foundations of Modern Art. New York: Dover. 1952. William Gaunt.. The Life and Art of Renoir.. London: Phaidon Press.. 1952.. Michel Drucker.. Renoir.. Paris: Tisné.. 1955.. S. Lane Faison, Jr.. Guide to Art Museums of New England.. Hew York: Harcourt Brace.. 1958.. Hermann Bûnemann.. Renoir.. Ettal: Buch Kunstverlag.. 1959.. M. Serullaz,. "L'Impressionisme, histoire du movement." in Le Peintres Impressionnistes.. Paris: Ed. Pierre Tisné.. 1959.:pp. 55-68.. Daulte, François. "Des Renoir et des chevaux." Connaissance des Arts 103 (September 1960): 26–38. H. Perrichot.. La vie de Renoir.. Paris.. 1964.. Barbara Ehrlich White.. "Renoir's Trip to Italy.". Art Bulletin, 51:4.. (Dec. 1969).:pp. 333-351.. Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute. List of Paintings in the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute. Williamstown, MA: Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, 1970. Pierre Cabanne.. Renoir.. Paris: Réalités-Hachette.. 1970.. . Génies et réalités: Renoir.. Paris: Réalités.. 1971.. . L'Opera completa de Auguste Renoir, Classici dell'Arte.. Milan: Rizzoli.. 1972.. Elda Fezzi.. L'opera complete di Renoir, nel periodo impressionista 1869-1883.. Milan: Rizzoli.. 1972.. Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute. List of Paintings in the Sterling & Francine Clark Art Institute. Williamstown, MA: Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, 1972. Barbara Ehrlich White.. An Analysis of Renoir's Development from 1877-1887. Columbia Ph.D. diss. 1965.. Ann Arbor: University Microfilms.. 1972.. Hess, Thomas and Linda Nochlin, eds. Woman as Sex Object: Studies in Erotic Art, 17301970. New York: Newsweek Books, 1972. . Impressionism, Editions Réalités. New York: Putnam. 1973. Barbara Ehrlich White.. "The Bathers of 1887 and Renoir's Anti-Impressionism.". vol. 55.. The Art Bulletin.. (March 1973).:pp. 106-26.. Max-Pol Fouchet.. Les nus de Renoir.. Lausanne: La Guilde du Livre et Claire Fontaine.. 1974.. Callen, Anthea. Renoir. London: Oresko Books. 1978. Diane Kelder.. The Great Book of French Impressionism.. New York: Cross River Press/Abbeville Press.. 1980.. Brooks, John H. Highlights: Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute. Williamstown, MA: Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, 1981. Edward Lucie-Smith.. The Body: Images of the Nude.. London: Thames & Hudson.. 1981.. Kelder, Diane. Le grand livre de l'impressionnisme français. Paris & Lausanne: Bibliothèque des Arts & Edita, 1981. White, Barbara Ehrlich. Renoir: His Life, Art, and Letters. New York: Abrams, 1984. Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute. List of Paintings in the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute. Williamstown, MA: Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, 1984. Raffaele de Grada.. Renoir.. Milan: Mondadori.. 1989.. Raffaele de Grada.. Renoir.. New York: Arch Cape Press.. 1989.. Raffaele de Grada.. Renoir.. Milan: Fenice 2000, also Italian, Spanish, French, Dutch ed.. 1989. Sophie Monneret.. Renoir.. Paris: Editions Chêne.. 1989.. Lucie-Smith, Edward. Impressionist Women. London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson; New York: Harmony Books, 1989. Nicholas Wadley, ed.. Renoir: A Retrospective.. New York: Hugh Lauter Levin/Macmillan.. 1987.. Distel, Anne. Renoir: "Il faut embellir". Paris: Réunion des Musées Nationaux & Découvertes Gallimard. 1993. Kern, Steven, ed. List of Paintings in the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute. Williamstown, MA: Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, 1992. Kostenevich, Albert. Hidden Treasures Revealed: Impressionist Masterpieces and Other Important French Paintings Preserved by the State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg. Moscow: Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation; St. Petersburg: State Hermitage Museum; New York: in association with H. N. Abrams, 1995. White, Barbara Ehrlich. Impressionists Side by Side: Their Friendships, Rivalries and Artistic Exchanges. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1996. Steven Kern.. "Der Mensch als Kriterium der Schönheit: Auguste Renoirs Stilistische Entwicklung anhand seiner Badenden.". Österreichische Galerie: Belvedere: Zeitschrift für bildende Kunst, 1/97.. (1997).:pp. 46-61.. Lorenz Eitner.. An Outline of 19th Century European Painting from David through Cézanne. 2 vol.. New York: Harper and Row.. 1988.. Sotheby's, New York.. Impressionist and Modern Art, Thursday, Nov. 13, 1997. Tamar Garb.. Bodies of Modernity: Figure and Flesh in Fin-de-Siècle France.. London: Thames and Hudson.. 1998.. Takao Okamura.. Shukan Bijutsukan.. Tokyo: Shogakukan.. January 30, 2001.. François Daulte.. Auguste Renoir, Catalogue Raisonné de l'Oeuvre Peint.. Paris: Durand-Ruel.. 1971.. 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Provenance

[Durand-Ruel, Paris, on deposit from the artist, Apr. 1885, bought from the artist, 3 Feb. 1892, sold to Clark, 4 Oct. 1937, as Baigneuse (La Brune)];¹ Robert Sterling Clark (1937–55); Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, 1955. 1. François Daulte, Auguste Renoir, Catalogue raisonné de l'oeuvre peint, 1971, gives the date of sale to Clark as 26 April 1949; the invoice in the Clark’s curatorial file, however, shows that Clark bought the painting on 4 Oct. 1937, paid in installments, and completed payment on 22 Nov. 1938.