Estate of the artist
Jean Renoir, Paris & Los Angeles (acquired by 1921)
Dalzell Hatfield Galleries, Los Angeles (acquired from the above)
Private Collection, France (and sold: Sotheby's, New York, November 10, 2000, lot 110)
Private Collection, Tokyo
Acquired from the above by the present owner

Los Angeles, Dalzell Hatfield Galleries, Renoir, 1954, no. 212

Bernheim-Jeune, ed., L'Atelier de Renoir, vol. II, Paris, 1931, no. 436, illustrated pl. 141
Guy-Patrice & Michel Dauberville, Renoir, Catalogue raisonné des tableaux, pastels, dessins et aquarelles, vol. V, Paris, 2014, no. 4154, illustrated p. 306

Canvas is unlined. Edges are reinforced with tape. Colors are bright and fresh. Under UV light a small line of inpainting is visible at extreme lower left corner, another at upper right corner. In addition there is one dot in the background above the figure's hair and another to the right of her bust, otherwise fine. This work is in very good condition.
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.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

The present work is a portrait of Gabrielle Renand, Renoir’s housemaid and governess to his children. She became Renoir’s favorite and frequent model in his later works, and images of her from this period such as Jeune fille au panier (Gabrielle au jardin) (see fig. 1), with flushed cheeks, dark hair and sensuous red lips, are typical of the artist’s attempt to move away from his self-proclaimed manière aigre (sour manner) that he felt had pervaded his earlier work.

Renoir emphasizes the lyrical quality of color, testing warmer hues of red and pink offset by calm yellows and a touch of green to describe a calm scene of intimacy and quietude. The artist’s representations of Gabrielle served to explore his capacity for greater Impressionistic effects, and this exam🌜ple of Renoir’s mature oeuvre displays his pre-eminence at rendering light as it fell upon the human form.  

Renoir’s portraits of women were widely admired for their sweet docility and sensual allure. The critic Théodore Duret wrote, “I doubt whether any painter has ever interpreted women in a more seductive manner. The deft and lively strokes of Renoir’s brush are charming, supple, and unrestrained, making flesh transparent and tinting the cheeks and lips with a perfect living hue. Renoir’s women are enchantresses” (Théodore Duret, Histoire des peintres impressionnistes, Paris, 1922, p. 27). By the time this picture was painted, Gabrielle had been working for the Renoir family for around 18 years; Renoir undoubtedly knew her well. Indeed, in the years leading up to her departure from the Renoir household in 1914, she began to pose for him in the nude, and this provocative painting anticipates these increasingly risqu&ea♈cute; portraits. Archetypal of Renoir’s choice of subject matter, Ga🥃brielle is here caught in a moment of reflection; a contemplative and serene act that draws the viewer into the scene.