Leontine and Coco 1909

Pierre-Auguste Renoir made "Leontine and Coco", sometime in his career, with oil on canvas. Check out the way Renoir works the surface of this painting; it’s all about the brushstrokes. It's like he's not just painting a picture, but also showing you how the picture came to be. I love how the colours are soft and warm. Look at the pinks and peaches in their faces, and the way the light catches in Coco’s hair. The paint is layered so thinly and so loosely, creating a sort of visual vibration across the image. The way Renoir captures the texture of skin is so delicate. It's a dance between light and shadow, softness and definition. There is such a lovely harmony between the two figures, Leontine and Coco, each absorbed in their own thoughts, and together they become this tender moment in time. There’s something of Berthe Morisot's domestic scenes in the air here; both artists had a deep empathy and an intimate understanding of everyday life. Art like this reminds us that beauty can be found in the simplest of moments.