I sometimes ask myself : “do we really need another Impressionist exhibition?” so visited this Royal Academy show of work from the Danish collector Ordrupgaard with no expectations. My looking, however, was well rewarded.
I have an issue with Gauguin (not the one you might think) which I won’t go into here so haven’t included any of his paintings. Some of the work was quite fabulous so here are a few that I picked out. As ever, the photos only give a hint of the actual piece.
I’ve long admired the work of Berthe Morisot (see one of her paintings above), while some of Cezanne’s painting has left me cold. Not so this small painting with its voluptuous and sensitive mark-making.
Another find was this oil sketch by Daumier from his Don Quixote series.
Degas, most famous for his ballerinas, painted all kinds of other scenes including this oil sketch of a New Orleans domestic courtyard. Look at the tender rendition of the child’s face and the liveliness of the dog.
Renoir has a sugariness about him much of the time but this exquisite little oil has a perfect balance of delicacy and energy.
