Renoir, Pierre-Auguste (1841-1919)
Jeune femme au chat (Woman with a Cat)
c.1875
Oil on canvas, 56 x 46.4 cm
National Gallery of Art, Washington
Shown from about the waist up, a young woman wearing white sits in an armchair cuddling a brown and black striped cat in this vertical painting. The scene is painted with blended brushstrokes, giving it a soft look. The wall behind them is seafoam green, and the edge of a yellow floral curtain lines the left edge of the canvas. The woman’s body is angled to our right and she looks at the cat with dark eyes. The woman’s light brown hair is pulled up, and her pale skin is accentuated by rosy cheeks. Her bare arms enfold the cat, held upright against the left side of her body so its head rests against her cheek. She supports the cat’s upper body with her right hand, on which she wears an emerald ring. The cat’s lower body nestles into the crook of the woman’s left arm. Its paws are extended and its head pulled back. The white and blue tones of the woman’s short-sleeved dress and kerchief tied around her neck contrast against the muted burgundy-red of the armchair behind her. To our right, behind the woman, vibrant, loose brushstrokes in red, orange, green, violet, and white could be a floral arrangement. (NGA)