Theft at Renoir museum in France reignites debate over artist's legacy
Two paintings were stolen from the Renoir museum in Cagnes-sur-Mer this week, an incident that has revived long-running debate about the impressionist's contested reputation. The theft coincides with a major upcoming Renoir exhibition at London's National Gallery.
Thieves broke into the museum bearing Pierre-Auguste Renoir's name in Cagnes-sur-Mer this week, cutting through a perimeter fence with bolt cutters. They made off with two paintings after initially taking four, abandoning two others as they fled the scene.
The stolen works were Portrait of Madame Colonna Romano and the unfinished Jeune Femme au Puits, depicting a woman drawing water from a well. The theft has unsettled the French art world and reopened a long-simmering debate about Renoir's standing among the impressionists.
A divisive figure
While Renoir was a central figure of the impressionist movement alongside Monet, Cézanne and Degas, his reputation has suffered in recent decades. In 2015, a group calling itself Renoir Sucks at Painting picketed the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston and the Met in New York, demanding his works be removed from display. The campaign trended on social media and sold hundreds of protest T-shirts. Criticism of his work as overly soft and decorative is not new — even contemporaries such as Édouard Manet and Mary Cassatt were dismissive of his paintings.
Despite the criticism, the theft comes at a notable moment: London's National Gallery is due to open a major exhibition, Renoir and Love, next month, following a successful run at the Musée d'Orsay in Paris this summer.
Security at the regional museum has been described as inadequate, and art experts have suggested the stolen works will be difficult for the thieves to sell given how recognisable and well-documented they are.
