Head of a Young Girl

c. 1890

Auguste Renoir

Associated Names
Auguste Renoir

Artist, French, 1841 - 1919

This painting shows a young woman's upper body from the torso up. She is seated and facing the right, with her face seen in profile and one arm bent in front of her, seeming to rest on a brown table or surface. She has pale skin, round, rosy cheeks, a small nose, and pink lips that are slightly parted. Her brown hair is styled into a smooth, glossy bun at the nape of her neck. She is wearing a white garment with thin straps over her shoulders. The background features a yellow section on the bottom half, and on the top half is a colorful, abstract pattern with large, soft, swirling forms in shades of orange and red on a blue-gray background with hints of green.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    oil on canvas

  • Credit Line

    Gift of Vladimir Horowitz

  • Dimensions

    overall: 42.6 x 33.3 cm (16 3/4 x 13 1/8 in.)
    framed: 67.6 x 58.7 x 6.9 cm (26 5/8 x 23 1/8 x 2 11/16 in.)

  • Accession Number

    1948.18.1

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Pierre Auguste Renoir; sold 26 June 1900 to (Durand-Ruel, New York and Paris). Probably Alexandre Berthier [1883-1918], Prince de Wagram, Paris. [1] (Durand-Ruel, New York and Paris); by whom sold 23 October 1926 to Chester Dale [1882-1962], New York; (sold, Parke-Bernet Galleries, New York, 16 March 1944, no. 65); (Dalzell Hatfield Galleries, Los Angeles). [2] (Gabriel Schneider Gallery, New York). [3] Vladimir Horowitz [1904-1989], New York; gift 1948 to NGA.
[1] Prince of Wagram per Chester Dale Papers, Archives of American Art (copy, NGA curatorial files). After his death, Wagram's collection was sold by his heirs through Étienne Bignou, Paris, to Alex Reid & Lefèvre, London; it is possible Durand-Ruel repurchased this painting at that time.
[2]Annotated sales catalogue, Knoedler Library microfiche American sales no. 1369.
[3]Schneider according to François Daulte, Auguste Renoir, catalogue raisonné de l'oeuvre peint, Lausanne, 1971-, vol. 1, no. 597.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1924

  • Exhibitions of Paintings by Renoir, Durand-Ruel Galleries, New York, 1924, no. 1.

2009

  • Renoir au XXe siècle, Galeries nationales du Grand Palais, Paris; Los Angeles County Museum of Art; Philadelphia Museum of Art, 2009-2010, no. 37, repro.

2013

  • Intimate Impressionism from the National Gallery of Art, Museo dell'Ara Pacis Augustae, Rome (exhibition title in this venue: Impressionist Gems); California Palace of the Legion of Honor, San Francisco; McNay Art Museum, San Antonio; Mitsubishi Ichigokan Museum, Tokyo, Seattle Art Museum, 2013-2016, pl. 38.

Bibliography

1929

  • Dale, Maud. Before Manet to Modigliani from the Chester Dale Collection. New York, 1929: no. 30, repro., as Head of Girl.

1965

  • Summary Catalogue of European Paintings and Sculpture. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1965: 111.

1968

  • National Gallery of Art. European Paintings and Sculpture, Illustrations. Washington, 1968: 101, repro.

1971

  • François Daulte. Auguste Renoir, catalogue raisonné de l'oeuvre peint. Vol.I: Figures 1860-1890. Lausanne, 1971: no. 597.

1975

  • European Paintings: An Illustrated Summary Catalogue. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1975: 292, repro.

1985

  • European Paintings: An Illustrated Catalogue. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1985: 336, repro.

Inscriptions

upper right: Renoir.

Wikidata ID

Q20190155

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