Luncheon of the Boating Party (English Edition) by Susan Vreeland

Luncheon of the Boating Party (English Edition) Reviews

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  Brigitte

  bonne
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  Peyriere Alicia

  On prend conscience de la difficulté de composer un tableau. Cest très bien raconté et on apprend beaucoup sur des personnages réels et sur toute lépoque impressionniste.
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  Samantha Helle Sebens

  Impressionism has always been my favorite style of art. A print of Monets Water Lilies has hung in my bedroom for years. But Ive never really understood the obsession with Renoirs Luncheon of the Boating Party. After reading this book, I realize that I didnt truly understand Impressionism. This book brought home to me who these painters were, what their lives were like and how Paris influenced their lifestyles.This book only follows Renoir as he paints Luncheon, which is about a two month period. The painting is literally brought to life. Instead of being nameless boaters, I now know the names of the models in the painting. Susan Vreeland steps insides their lives for a mere two months and, yet, I feel like I know them now. Ive never looked at a painting and thought about how hard it would be to hold that pose for hours. Ive never thought of the posers as actual people. I was fascinated by the descriptions of color, by the discussions of how to pose and by the inner thoughts of Renoir as he tries to figure out how to make this painting come together.This book also described a pivotal moment for the Impressionists. In the past, they stuck together as a group. Monet, Sisley, Pissaro, Degas, Cezanne, Renoir and many others presented a united front against critics of their new style. Now, their group is starting to break apart. Many of the original group are going separate ways and the entire field of Impressionism is changing. Also, private dealers are about to become important as opposed to submission based art shows. The entire art community is changing and this book is able to give a sense of the politics of art at that time.While most of the book is narrated from Renoirs perspective, several of the models he uses also have point of view chapters. Through them we see several sides of what life in Paris would have been like. Jeanne is a successful actress, Ellen is a mime in the Follies who dreams of being a real actress, Gustave is a part of the Impressionist movement who supports the others when they need it. Each character that has a chapter is brought lovingly to life. We see the impact many of these people have on Renoir and on his painting. This book is a snapshot of these lives but it shows so much. It is almost painful to watch Renoir struggle to pay for paint when I know that his paintings are currently some of the most well known and renowned ever. I think the biggest compliment I can pay this book is that it changed the way I will look at art forever.
• 
  venu shekar

  I thoroughly enjoyed reading it. I got to learn a lot of things about that certain era in France; the history, artists, paintings, critics, muses.I found a profound interest in artists and their paintings. Lively and entertaining. The French movie Renoir inspired and made me curious, leading to this wonderful book. The author does a tremendous job bringing historical fiction and making it interesting to the contemporary reader.
• 
  Linda

  Members of the weekly luncheon boating party were somewhat confusing, but once I caught on I enjoyed the novel. Will revisit the Musee DOrsay to appreciate further the impressionist painters. Also I year to see the restaurant where the painting was done.
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  Geraldine O'Brien

  This is my favourite painting and such a lovely book. If you are a fan of Renoir youMust read this book. Read it twice.
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  SRS

  Me gustó saber sobre los Impresionistas y sus diferencias. Cómo entre ellos había amistad y al mismo tiempo celos y competencia.La historia es muy entretenida pero con demasiados personajes.