chi Jill Shuberg
Pierre Auguste Renoir (French, 1841-1919)
Woman at the Piano
(image botton of page)
When I saw this piece at the Art Institute of Chicago, I was instantly drawn to it. The painting of a woman comfortably playing the piano in a soft white dress that flowed throughout the painting. The brush stroked moved down the dress as if there were movement through her making her suddenly real.
Glancing at it I instantly put myself in her place. I played the piano for 5 years when I was younger and unfortunately I stopped a little after starting high school. I can feel myself in her spot so involved with the music where almost everything around her has disappeared. She looks so relaxed and at peace with the world. All that she notices are where her fingers are touching the piano and the gorgeous sound it makes afterwards. She has several sheets of music above the piano so it is clear that she plays fairly often. Not only does she look relaxed playing her music but the outfit she is wearing flows, lose not tight, it looks very comfortable, like she knows this is her time away from the busy world to enjoy.
She almost appears ghostly, as if she is going to remain there forever. Or the place where she belongs is on that seat in front of the piano. Her pale complexion and the white of her dress also give her a vibe of being in a separate world than her dark backgrounds. Unlike a ghost I feel like she’s not slightly transparent but the focus is on her and her background are slipping away.
Notice how she is mostly all white, the keys of the piano are all white, along with the sheet music. Her fingers are almost blending with the keys that would make her part of the music, at unity. She has a similar expression on her face to when I first looked at the painting. Completely in awe, time completely stops for a few moments.
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