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Dance at Bougival

Pierre-Auguste Renoir, 1883

Pierre-Auguste Renoir's Dance at Bougival, dated 1883, shows a young couple turning together at an open-air dance outside Paris. The painting belongs to the Museum of Fine Arts Boston, and its tall format, 181.9 by 98.1 cm, puts the dancers at close to life-size, so you meet them almost at eye level.

Where to see it

Dance at Bougival is in the collection of the Museum of Fine Arts Boston, in Boston, Massachusetts. Display arrangements can change because of rehangings, conservation or loans, so check the Museum of Fine Arts Boston's official website for current display status, opening hours and ticket information before you visit. If you want to see this painting in particular, you can also contact the museum ahead of your trip to confirm it is on view.

What to look for in person

A couple caught mid-turn

The two dancers fill almost the whole height of the canvas, and at 181.9 cm tall the figures read close to life-size. Notice how the man leans in toward his partner while she turns her head slightly away, her face partly shaded by her bonnet. His own face is largely hidden beneath his straw hat. The pose suggests the swing of a dance rather than a posed portrait, and the tight framing places you almost on the dance floor beside them. Stand back first to take in the whole movement.

The red bonnet and the pale dress

The woman's red bonnet is the strongest spot of colour in the picture, and it pulls your eye to the centre of the composition. Compare it with her light dress. Look closely and you will see that Renoir builds it from varied touches of colour rather than a single flat tone. Against this, the man's dark suit forms a solid, heavy shape that anchors the pair. Try viewing from a few metres away and then moving closer. At a distance the dress glows, and up close the brushwork becomes loose and visible.

The café crowd behind them

Behind the couple, Renoir sketches seated figures at tables beneath trees. They are painted far more loosely than the dancers, which keeps the focus on the couple while still setting the scene. These background details place the dance at an outdoor riverside venue, the kind of leisure spot that Parisians visited on Sundays and holidays. Let your eye move from the crisp faces and hands of the dancers out to the softer, blurred crowd. You can see how Renoir uses different degrees of finish to create depth.

About the painting

Bougival is a village on the Seine west of Paris. In the second half of the nineteenth century it was a popular destination for Parisians looking for an afternoon by the river, with boating, open-air cafés and dancing. Renoir and other Impressionist painters returned again and again to scenes of this kind of modern leisure. They painted ordinary people enjoying their free time, not historical or mythological subjects. Dance at Bougival, dated 1883, belongs to that tradition, but it narrows the view from a crowded scene to a single couple. Its unusually tall format, 181.9 by 98.1 cm, is closer to a full-length portrait than to a typical landscape or genre picture. This gives the dancers a physical presence in the gallery. The early 1880s were a period when Renoir was rethinking his approach. Art historians widely note that during these years he gave more weight to drawing and clearly defined figures. That shift is visible here in the contrast between the firmly modelled couple and the loosely brushed background. The woman is generally identified as Suzanne Valadon, who modelled for several artists and later became a painter in her own right. Dance at Bougival is also commonly discussed alongside two other large dance paintings Renoir made around the same time. In front of the canvas, take time with the hands, the faces and the play of light, and with how Renoir balances movement against stillness. The painting is held by the Museum of Fine Arts Boston.

Key facts

More by Pierre-Auguste Renoir

• La Balançoire — Musée d'Orsay
• Jean Renoir sewing
• Luncheon of the Boating Party
• The Great Bathers — Philadelphia Museum of Art
• Dance in the City — Musée d'Orsay
• Girls at the Piano — Musée d'Orsay
• La Liseuse — Musée d'Orsay
• Torse, effet de soleil — Musée d'Orsay
• Mlle Irene Cahen d'Anvers
• Bather with a Griffon Dog
• Two Sisters — Art Institute of Chicago
• Bal du moulin de la Galette — Musée d'Orsay

Sources

• Wikidata Q4451145
• www.mfa.org