Städel Museum
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Impressionism and the French Art of the Eighteenth Century
Pierre-Auguste Renoir is one of the outstanding painters of French Impressionism – and far more than that. For the first time the Städel Museum will be addressing the surprising references in his art to Rococo painting in a large-scale special exhibition.
Welcome!
The Städel Museum is open. The official burden of proof and mask requirements are no longer necessary for your visit.
Tickets are available in our online shop and at the ticket counter.
“The first exhibition highlight at Frankfurt’s Städel in 2022 is devoted to the master of Impressionism and his passion for the Rococo.”
Philipp Demandt, Director, Städel Museum
Whereas Rococo painting was considered frivolous and immoral after the French Revolution, it underwent a revival in the nineteenth century and was widely visible in Renoir’s lifetime. Having trained as a porcelain painter, he was also intimately acquainted with the imagery of artists such as Antoine Watteau, Baptiste Siméon Chardin, François Boucher and Jean-Honoré Fragonard. He shared the Rococo’s predilection for certain subjects, among them promenaders in the park and on the riverbank, moments of repose in the outdoors, and the garden party. Renoir also frequently devoted himself to the depiction of domestic scenes and family life as well as intimate moments such as bathing, reading or making music. Yet he not only took orientation from the motifs of the Rococo, but also particularly admired its loose and sketchy manner of painting as well as its brilliant palette, aspects that would have a formative influence on him and many other artists in the Impressionist circle.
Trenchant juxtapositions of Renoir’s art with works of the eighteenth century as well as his own contemporaries – Edgar Degas, Édouard Manet, Claude Monet and Berthe Morisot – will provide an overview of Impressionism’s intense artistic examination of the Rococo.
The exhibition will show a total of some 120 outstanding paintings, works on paper and handcrafted objects from international museums such as the National Gallery in Washington, D.C., the Musée d’Orsay in Paris, the National Gallery in London, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles, as well as private collections.
Curators: Dr. Alexander Eiling (Head of Modern Art, Städel Museum), Dr. Juliane Betz (Deputy Head of Modern Art, Städel Museum), Dr. Fabienne Ruppen (Research Assistant, Modern Art, Städel Museum)
Picture: Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Woman with a Fan, ca. 1879, The Clark Art Institute, Williamstown, Photo: Image courtesy Clark Art Institute. clarkart.edu
The Embarkation for Cythera, ca. 1709–1710
Oil on canvas, 45.5 × 56 cm
Städel Museum, Frankfurt am Main, joint property with Städelscher Museums-Verein e.V.
Photo: Städel Museum, Frankfurt am Main
After the Luncheon (La fin du déjeuner), 1879
Oil on canvas, 100.5 × 81.3 cm
Städel Museum, Frankfurt am Main
Photo: Städel Museum, Frankfurt am Main
Oarsmen at Chatou, 1879
Oil on canvas, 81.2 × 100.2 cm
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., Gift of Sam A. Lewisohn
Photo: Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington
Portrait of Madame Monet (Madame Claude Monet Reading), ca. 1874
Oil on canvas, 61,7 × 50,3 cm
The Clark Art Institute, Williamstown
Photo: Image courtesy Clark Art Institute. clarkart.edu
Pastoral Festivity, ca. 1725–1735
Oil on canvas, 49,5 × 59,1 cm
Städel Museum, Frankfurt am Main
Photo: U. Edelmann
The Promenade, 1870
Oil on canvas, 81,3 × 64,8 cm
The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles
Photo: Digital image courtesy of the Getty’s Open Content Program
“In the case of Renoir in particular, tradition and modernity interplay in a productive way.”
Curators Alexander Eiling, Juliane Betz and Fabienne Ruppen, Städel Museum
Prepared for the exhibition
The free one-pager takes you right to the heart of Renoir’s imagery – idyllic scenes of pleasure and recreation. Ideal preparation for your visit to the exhibition – at home or on the go.
Available as free App
Use the audio guide to become better acquainted with the work of Pierre-Auguste Renoir from a new perspective. In audio tracks and illustrations, surprising connections are drawn between Impressionism and the French art of the eighteenth century.
Thursday, 9 June, 7.00 pm
English is your native tongue and you’d like to talk to others about art in that language? Or you’re a non-native speaker and would be interested in building on your knowledge of English outside your professional environment? With Art Talks, we are offering a program of guided tours providing a relaxed atmosphere in which the fine arts will inspire you to perfect your English. The prerequisite is good command of English; specialized knowledge is not required.
Costs: 16 Euro (includes entrance fee)
Tickets: Available from May at our online shop
Tours are available in English, German, French, Italian, Russian, Dutch and Japanese. Please contact us to arrange your group visit even if you do not wish to book a guided tour.
Booking and advice
+49(0)69-605098-200
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LA FÊTE – the grand party – intoxicates with French flair, pulsating beats, flowers and light. While young art experts invite you to join them in the exhibition, Chloé, the internationally renowned star from Paris, whisks you away into the world of electronic music. The legendary Karotte will also get the dance floor shaking and ensure an unforgettable summer night.
Media partner
hr – Hessischer Rundfunk, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, ARTE