OP: Renoir's Table

Simon & Schuster, New York, 1994. Hardcover. Very Good Plus. First US printing.

Pierre-Auguste Renoir’s (1841–1919) paintings, touched by warm sunlight and joie de vivre, have a pleasing effect on the soul. The implication in Renoir’s Table (1994) is that a great artist, almost by definition, must appreciate and indulge in all of life’s sensory pursuits, including the culinary variety.

Whether penniless and making the most of wild-caught hare or enjoying the fruits, herbs, and vegetables grown at his countryside retreat, Renoir found beauty in life and table and translated it to canvas. Here, photographer Jean-Bernard Naudin, journalist Jean-Michel Charbonnier, and food writer Jacqueline Saulnier combine image, biography, and recipe to evoke the kind of late 19th century fare available to the artist during his time in Paris and le Midi.

Very Good, overall, with bumped corners. First US printing.