“I am just learning how to paint.” – Pierre-Auguste Renoir (in 1913 at the age of 72)
I saw this quote while viewing an exhibit of the last 30 years of Renoir’s work at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Along with Monet, Renoir was a key figure in the Impressionist art movement, which was marked by its extraordinary use of color, shadow, and light. What I found so striking about this quote was the depth of wisdom that Renoir had achieved through the form of painting. He had developed what Suzuki Roshi called “beginner’s mind.” And even though he was considered one of the most distinguished painters of his time, he maintained a sense of humility in that.
And perhaps even more than beginner’s mind, what I hear in his quote, and saw in his work, was an appreciation that creativity always has a new edge. His painting was evolving, and this is also what he meant by “just learning.” His last 30 years of work were criticized for being a break from his earlier work and the impressionist movement, which many thought was more innovative. But in this period he was returning, with fresh eyes, to the classical painting tradition. What is more innovative than the blending of old and new? What is more interesting than engaging life with a genuinely open mind?
Nice! And very relevant to the path. It’s easy to forget that “there are no enlightened egos.” The awake moment is right now, and always totally new.
(Still, I like Renoir’s old stuff. Just kidding!)
Thanks for the insights – yours and Renoir’s. I am “just learning” a lot of things, and I will try to cultivate “beginner’s mind.” In fact, my first meditation teacher, Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche, encouraged us to “Be like a 5-6 year old child in a museum,” since “children don’t walk through a museum seeing every little brush-stroke. They see things with an innocent awareness. They feel joy, but they can’t articulate it.”