Head of a Young Woman 1902

Pierre-Auguste Renoir painted this ‘Head of a Young Woman’ with oils, probably in one or two sittings. I love how the young woman emerges from a ground of muted greens and grays, colors that give the painting an ethereal, dreamlike quality. It makes you wonder, what was Renoir thinking when he painted this young woman’s portrait? She's soft and round, made of gentle brushstrokes, and her skin glows with the faintest pinks and reds. I can almost feel the softness of her cheek. There's a directness in her gaze, a sense of openness that is captivating. Maybe Renoir was trying to capture something deeper about her inner life, a sense of her spirit, and her youth? I think about other painters like Berthe Morisot, how she also painted portraits of women with such sensitivity and nuance. There's an exchange of ideas across time, each artist pushing the boundaries of what painting can do.