Acrobats at the Cirque Fernando (Francisca and Angelina Wartenberg)

Notes from the museum

This painting depicts a favorite Parisian pastime in the late nineteenth century: attending the circus. Among the enthusiastic crowds at these events were men on the prowl in a world of young female entertainers. But Pierre-Auguste Renoir barely alluded to the unwholesome aspects of this environment, relegating a group of dark-suited men, seated in the front row, to the very top of the composition. “For me a picture . . . should be something likeable, joyous, and pretty,” Renoir insisted. “There are enough ugly things in life for us not to add to them.” Acrobats at the Cirque Fernando reflects this worldview as well as the artist’s enchantment with the innocence of childhood. The two circus girls in this painting, Francisca and Angelina Wartenberg, were actually seventeen and fourteen years old, respectively, when Renoir made this painting, although they appear much younger here. Although they were acrobats in the circus, Renoir posed the sisters in costume at his studio, allowing him to capture them in daylight—he feared that the circus’s harsh gas lighting would turn “faces into grimaces.” He portrayed them standing in the middle of the circus ring, having just finished their act and taking their bows. One sister turns to the crowd, acknowledging its approval, while the other faces the viewer with an armful of oranges, a rare treat that audiences tossed in tribute. Renoir envel

Text: Art Institute of Chicago (open access). Our full story for this work is coming soon.

Slow Look

1. The whole picture Let your eyes wander. Where do they want to rest?
2. The light Find the brightest spot. What is it showing you?
3. The edges Look at what is half cut off at the borders.
4. One small detail Choose one tiny thing and stay with it for a while.
5. The whole picture again Step back. Has it changed for you?

About Pierre-Auguste Renoir

Pierre-Auguste Renoir was a leading French Impressionist artist. In his depiction of feminine beauty, Renoir has been described as "the final representative of a tradition which runs directly from Rubens to Watteau."

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