Jean Renoir Sewing

Jean Renoir Sewing — Pierre-Auguste Renoir. 1899–1900.

Medium: Oil on canvas. Dimensions: 55.4 × 46.3 cm (21 3/4 × 18 1/4 in.); Framed: 68.3 × 60.1 × 6.1 cm (26 7/8 × 23 5/8 × 2 3/8 in.).

Collection record: Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago. Museum connection according to this source; current display unverified.

Pierre-Auguste Renoir’s son Jean, seen here, served as a model for his father from a young age. Renoir so loved the “silken gold” of his son’s long hair, then in fashion for little boys, that he insisted it remain long until Jean was seven, much to his embarrassment. Jean, later a prominent film director, recalled that the children’s nanny, Gabrielle, suggested that he keep himself occupied during the modeling session for this painting by sewing a satin coat for his toy camel.

Description: © Art Institute of Chicago, original record, CC BY 4.0. HTML formatting removed; wording retained. Other artwork metadata: CC0.

Source: official collection record. Metadata selected and normalized by Artline from the source export, accessed 10 September 2026; no museum endorsement. Reproduction rights are separate.