Young Woman with Peonies
Frédéric Bazille·1870
Historical Context
Painted in 1870 and now at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, this figure study of a young woman with peonies is one of three variants Bazille produced on the peonies-and-figure theme in his final year, including the celebrated 'Black Woman with Peonies' also of 1870. The combination of floral still life with a female figure in bright outdoor or window light allowed Bazille to synthesise two of his strongest subjects—portraiture and still life—in compositions that anticipate the decorative ambition of Renoir's major figure paintings of the 1870s. The peonies themselves, large and richly coloured, provided a testing subject for his handling of layered, voluminous petals.
Technical Analysis
The peony arrangement is painted with bold, gestural brushwork that captures the layers of petals without pedantic detail. The figure is more carefully modelled, creating a dialogue between the decorative vibrancy of the flowers and the psychological presence of the sitter.
