Galerie Matthiesen, Berlin
Simon Falk, Gothenburg
P. Matthews, London
Sale: Sotheby's London, 3rd July 1973, lot 43
Private Collection (purchased at the above sale; sale: Sotheby's London, 22nd June 2004, lot 144)
Purchased at the above sale by the present owner

Stockholm, Liljevachs Konsthall, Från Cézanne till Picasso, 1954

L'Amour de l'art, Paris, 1930, illustrated p. 415
Bernheim-Jeune (ed.), L'Atelier de Renoir, Paris, 1931, vol. I, no. 319, illustrated pl. 98 (as part of a larger canvas)

The canvas is not lined and there do not appear to be any signs of retouching visible under UV light. There is a tiny glue remnant to the upper left corner, a few very fine lines of craquelure and some very minor paint shrinkage to the area below the figure's elbow. There is some light surface dirt in places. Otherwise, this work is in overall very good original condition. Colours: fairly accurate in the printed catalogue, though overall slightly warmer in the original.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Young women reading and other domestic feminine activities dominate the scenes of social life that Renoir painted in the early 1900s. Femme lisant, painted circa 1906, exemplifies the fluid, soft brushwork and nuanced palette that is so typical of Renoir's style at the turn of the century. Moving away from cooler colours, firm🍎 contours, and a clear distinction between figure and background that characterizes his portraits from the mid-1880s, Renoir organised his compositions with correlated colours on the canvas to achieve a sense of formal unity. The tangible forms in this work are surrounded by a warm, almost translucent atmosphere that the painter cre🎃ated with the creamy, expressive brushstrokes and vibrant colours of his mature style.

The modest background that surrounds the young woman is imbued with a sense of bourgeois calm and 𝓰comfort: she is absorbed in her book, and sits tranquilly on a soft armchair. Renoir employs a particularly grac🅘eful style of integrated brushstrokes, together with a palette of carefully coordinated tones of warm browns, whites and reds, to create an image of great appeal that complements his immensely genteel subject. An ennobler of the mundane, Renoir painted for visual delight, immersing himself in his modern, contradictory world, and emerging only with images of pleasure.