"You come to nature with all your theories, and she knocks them all flat." Renoir

The internet is such an entertaining medium. When looking for info about Renoir's The Large Bathers, I couldn't help but notice the ads in the side bar. Large bikinis offered by a place called Figleaves.com managed to catch my eye and I couldn't help but wonder at the click-through rate. Does this placement work? Maybe something in the Louvre gift shop would be worth a try. . .

Here's the painting, without the bikinis, but with the soft-edge style and subject matter he focused on after turning away from impressionism and pursuing classicism.

Thinking about artists who worked while ill since I've got a child on my hands with 105.3 temp. She's usually working with her paper and scissors, but is totally down for the count. Made me think about those who persist when they don't feel well. Renoir started to suffer from rheumatoid arthritis as early as 1907 and had some difficulty clutching a brush, but he continued nonetheless to produce scores of paintings. Matisse's struggles with illness are well known, as are is ingenious ways around it such as working from his bed with a long pole.

Maybe it's more a question of "how can I stop?" rather than "how can I continue?" Art as a compulsive pursuit - an OCD of sorts.