Impressionism: Paintings From The Clark at MMFA

Montreal Museum of Fine Arts

October 13, 2012 - January 20, 2013


The Montreal Museum of fine Arts (MMFA) was provided with the opportunity to host for 100 days the French impressionists' masterpieces from The Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute at Williamstown, Massachusetts, USA. The visitors have a unique occasion to see closely works by Bonnard, Corot, Cassatt, Degas, Gauguin, Manet, Millet, Monet, Morisot, Pissarro, Sisley and Toulouse-Lautrec and Renoir.

If you love Degas you will see two of his great works on display. Both show dancers either practicing in a class or assuming dancing poses. The lightness and elegance of the  composition and form is remarkable, and the dancers' portrayal both on canvas or as a sculpture work are superb.

Renoir is represented by an outstanding group of twenty-one canvases, more numerous collection of works than that of any other impressionist painter on display at MMFA. 

Among them are two of Renoir's self-portraits. One he painted when he was 55 years old. But by far the more remarkable one, seen to the left, he did at about age 34. This self-portrait was one of the 17 works exhibited by Renoir at the second Impressionist exhibition in April 1876. It is a miracle this painting survived at all, since Renoir originally discarded it. Here is the story in his own words : "I had thrown it in a rubbish bin, but since [the collector Victor] Crocquet asked me to let him take it, I had to agree, even thought I was sorry it was not better than it was." It is remarkable that Renoir at that time still was not able to judge positively the briskness and freshness of the brush strokes used in making this self-portrait, the overall sincerity and forcefulness of the image, as well as of his facial expression.

Above are two magnificent female portraits by Renoir of which he was a real master. Both portray a sitter busy with a traditional domestic occupation. The one to the right has a bright red hat. Renoir had several hats at his studio and liked painting women wearing hats. 

Of the 39 paintings by Renoir in the Sterling Clark's possession the one above was by far his favourite. It was painted during Renoir's stay in Naples in late 1881.

The exhibition also presents a number of remarkable works by Claude Monet. They are the type of paintings one would imagine right away when the term Impressionism is used.
        

The Clark Impressionist exhibition at MMFA also features several Camille Pissarro's painting. See one just above on the right and two below.

I will conclude with a painting by Berthe Morisot, one of the female impressionist painters who is now acquiring an international acclaim. This painting was shown at the 1886 Impressionist exhibition. The painting, for which Morisot used one of her favourite model, captures a private moment of a respectable young woman.

Click on images to enlarge them.

To find out more about this exhibition and the opening hours, visit the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts website.

You can purchase the exhibition catalogue at the Museum's Boutique and Store.