Favourite Paintings: 'The Skiff' by Renoir

'The Skiff' by Renoir is a favourite painting in the National Gallery. I've seen it many times and whenever I step into the room it's in my eyes are drawn to it by the gorgeous colours pulling at me. All those blues and greens with the slash of orange and yellow for the skiff itself. The painting shrieks of summer and sunshine and warmth with the dappled water and sun reflecting off everything. Those poor ladies in the boat must have been sweltering in all that sun with all those clothes, especially the rower.

I like looking at the details in the painting as well as absorbing the radiated heat. The railway bridge, the colourful house, the yacht, the indistinct people on the bank (partners of the ladies?), the clump of reeds. I love all the reflections in the water, spreading more colour into the water. It's also easy to see the brush-strokes, particularly in the water around the paddle. It looks like the waves were created by a brush simply dabbing at the canvas and the different shades create the dappled effect. It took me a long time to learn to look at the details in paintings rather than concentrate on the overall effect but it's very rewarding.

If you're in London it's well worth a visit to the National Gallery (enmasked, of course) to see this painting for yourself. Don't just glance at it, look at it.