PIERRE-AUGUSTE RENOIR | Claude Renoir enfant (Tête de Claude)

Estate of the artist
Galerie Bernheim-Jeune, Paris (acquired from the above)
Germaine Leconte, Paris
Lord Rothschild, Cambridge
Marlborough Fine Art, London
Sale: Sotheby's, London, April 21, 1971, lot 20
Paul Pétridès, Paris (acquired at the above sale)
Sam Salz, New York
Acquired from the above on June 24, 1974

Paris, Galerie Durand-Ruel, Renoir, 1936, n.n.

Bernheim-Jeune, ed., L'Atelier de Renoir, vol. II, Paris, 1931, no. 437, illustrated pl. 141
Guy-Patrice & Michel Dauberville, Renoir, Catalogue raisonné des tableaux, pastels, dessins et aquarelles, vol. V, Paris, 2014, no. 4269, illustrated p. 380 (dated 1912)

The work is in very good condition. The canvas has been lined. According to the Wildenstein Plattner Institute, this work has been cut down from a larger composition. The surface is clean. Under UV light, there appear to be a couple of strokes of inpainting in the lower right corner, near the sitter's right hand.
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.

Portraiture was central to Renoir's aesthetic. Of all the Impressionists he was perhaps the one who most excelled at this genre and infused the artistic tradition with new force and vibrancy. Renoir's success gave him the financial security to be selective with his commissions and focus on themes of his own choosing. He thus turned his attention to depicting members of his family. This charming portrait of Claude, Renoir’s third child born from his union with Aline Charigot whom he had married in 1890, is a lively depiction of one of the artist’s favorite subjects: his children. Renoir had painted numerous commissioned portraits of children in the earlier phase of his career, but following the births of Pierre in 1885, Jean in 1894 and Claude in 1901 he frequently turned to his sons as a source of inspiration. Much like with Aline, whom Renoir depicted in a variety of settings and guises, it was through his children that he sought to capture their growth and transition from infants to young boys. This work provides insight into Renoir’s artistic process and indeed bears testament to the importance of the family life he sought to capture in his work. 

This work will be included in the forthcoming Renoir Digital Catalogue Raisonné, currently being prepared under the sponsorship of the Wildenstein Plattner Institute, Inc.