Renoir Landscapes

I was pleased I managed to go to the Exhibition of Renoir Lanscapes at the National Gallery, just before it closed this weekend. I'd been recommended to go by a work colleague.

I have to say I found the townscapes more charming than the countryside views, and some of the Venetian pictures appeared somewhat unsuccessful. Renoir certainly had an eye for scenes involving water - the ones involving boating, or with a river in the background really caught my attention - but for vibrancy of colours the Algerian pictures are superb.

My favourites? 'Woman with a parasol and a Small Child on a Sunlit Hillside' (1874); 'Allee in the Woods' (c1878-9) - what a beautiful impression of a wild wood, 'The Jardin d'Essai, Algiers' (1881), 'Field of Banana Trees near Algiers' (1881), 'The Railway Bridge at Chatou' (1881) - utterly charming, and of course 'Chestnut Trees in Bloom'. What can be nicer than viewing some art followed by a cup of tea in the cafe in Trafalgar Square? Bliss.