Renoir's 'La Promenade' arrives in Italy for Impressionism's 150th anniversary

To mark 150 years since Impressionism's birth, the Fondazione Magnani – Rocca in Parma presents a major exhibition featuring Pierre Auguste Renoir's 'La Promenade' (1870), on loan from the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles. This is the painting's first visit to Italy, highlighting a prestigious collaboration between the two institutions. The work joins the permanent collection's French Impressionist holdings—the richest in Italy—including pieces by Monet, Cézanne, and two other Renoirs. 'La Promenade' is considered a precursor to Impressionism, which officially launched on April 15, 1874, with a group show by Monet, Pissarro, Morisot, and Renoir. The painting depicts a woman, likely Renoir's model and companion Lise Tréhot, and a man in a sunlit garden. Renoir's summer painting en plein air with Monet influenced his lighter palette, though 'La Promenade' retains darker greens and browns. The exhibition runs until December 15, 2024, at Villa dei Capolavori.