The artwork “Cup, Lemon and Tomato” by Pierre-Auguste Renoir, created circa 1916, is an oil on canvas belonging to the Impressionist movement. This still life painting is currently located in a private collection. The genre of the piece is reflective of a common theme found in such intimate works of the period, capturing everyday objects in a way that emphasizes the play of light and color.
In describing the artwork, one can observe the simplicity and intimacy of the subject matter—a cup, a lemon, and a tomato arranged on what appears to be a tabletop. The cup, adorned with a floral pattern, rests on a saucer and exudes a sense of emptiness despite its decorative exterior, possibly indicating a moment post-consumption. Adjacent to it is a spherical lemon, its textured surface suggested by Renoir’s loose yet deliberate brushwork; its yellow hue stands in soft contrast to the warm tonalities of the background. The tomato, with its ripe orange-red color and small protruding stem, adds a vivid touch to the arrangement and creates a visual link with some of the warmer tones in the cup’s design. The background and table are rendered with broad, fluid strokes, creating an impression of texture and depth that recedes gently behind the subjects, allowing them a quietly prominent presence. Renoir’s characteristic use of light imparts a subtle luminosity to the scene, a hallmark of the Impressionist desire to capture the transient effects of light on color and form.
