Two Sisters 《兩姐妹》

愛(ài)藝/譯

The two sisters and the sewing basket form a pyramid in the time-honored usage of generations of earlier painters. Also traditional is the balustrade， which sets off the figures from the background and lends a degree of architectural firmness to the otherwise complex irregularities of form. It was Renoirs gift， however， to be able to sustain his originality despite his respect for the accepted usage. That balance between tradition and invention is here masterfully exploited.

The figures seem immediate， caught in a particular moment. Their informality is brought out not only in the pose but in the extreme forward placement of the little girl; almost as a fragment， she appears to peek over the bottom limits of the frame. So too the basket of yarn and the green plant bucket to the extreme left. All seem crowded—almost prodigally—into an overflowing foreground. Though the terrace rail marks off a private corner in the shady park along the Seine， its thin and penetrable forms also provide a transition to the open tapestry of landscape behind the two girls. Trailing vines interlace with the rail and its metal supports， while at the right， the balustrade1 and potted plant become as one. In ways like these， we can observe how the artist retained a sense of disarming simplicity in his canvas despite the complexity of his forms and color.

“I arrange my subject as I want it，” the artist said， “then I go ahead and paint it like a child. I want a red to be sonorous2， to sound like a bell; if it doesnt turn out that way， I put in more reds or other colors till I get it. I am no cleverer than that.” What is missing from this or any other “explanation” is the intuition that directs the selection and emphasis. Nowhere else has the painter found a red more “sonorous.” But is it the red of the hats and yarn that is the directing force， or is it the opalescent3 tints of the flesh or the gleaming white of the girls dress as it is contrasted with the deep blues of the other dress， or the filmy greens of the trees that stand open to the sky？ No， it is not any one of these but all in their harmonious ensemble that have been the artists tools in accomplishing his final aim： to conjure a blossoming glade， where two girls are discovered quite by chance in a moment of quiet contentment.

兩姐妹和針線籃形成了一個(gè)金字塔結(jié)構(gòu)，這種構(gòu)圖歷史悠久，從早期歷代畫(huà)家流傳至今。欄桿也體現(xiàn)了傳統(tǒng)，從背景中襯托出人物，并為多少有些復(fù)雜的不規(guī)則形狀提供了一定程度的建筑堅(jiān)固感。然而，盡管雷諾阿尊重公認(rèn)的傳統(tǒng)畫(huà)法，但他的天賦讓他得以保持自己的獨(dú)創(chuàng)性。傳統(tǒng)和創(chuàng)新之間的平衡就在這幅畫(huà)中得到巧妙的展現(xiàn)。

兩個(gè)女孩呼之欲出，定格在了那一刻。兩人的姿態(tài)顯現(xiàn)出輕松隨意，而小女孩特別靠前的位置也體現(xiàn)了這一點(diǎn);小女孩的形象幾乎并不完整，她似乎望向畫(huà)框的底部。紗線籃和綠植桶在畫(huà)面最左邊，擺放得也很隨意。所有的東西似乎都幾近鋪張地?cái)D在前景中。露臺(tái)的欄桿在塞納河畔的綠蔭庭院中隔出了一個(gè)私密的角落，但細(xì)長(zhǎng)而通透的造型也提供了一種過(guò)渡，人們可由此看到兩個(gè)女孩身后那片織錦般的開(kāi)闊風(fēng)景。藤蔓纏繞在欄桿及其金屬支架上，右邊的欄桿和盆栽植物則融為了一體。通過(guò)這種種表現(xiàn)方式，觀畫(huà)者可以注意到雷諾阿如何在畫(huà)中保持了一種令人放松的簡(jiǎn)單，盡管他的構(gòu)圖和顏色相當(dāng)復(fù)雜。

“我會(huì)按照自己的想法安排主題，”雷諾阿說(shuō)，“安排好后，就像個(gè)孩子那樣開(kāi)始畫(huà)。我想要一種濃烈的紅色，看著它就像聽(tīng)到雄渾的鐘聲;如果畫(huà)出來(lái)不對(duì)，我就加入更多的紅色或其他顏色，直到得到想要的效果。我只會(huì)這種笨辦法。”這樣或那樣的“解釋”中沒(méi)有提到的是那種直覺(jué)，引導(dǎo)畫(huà)家選擇什么和突出什么的直覺(jué)。雷諾阿再?zèng)]找到比這幅畫(huà)里更“濃烈”的紅色了。不過(guò)，具有引導(dǎo)力的是帽子和紗線的紅嗎？還是女孩們肌膚煥發(fā)的乳白或小女孩衣服與大女孩深藍(lán)連衣裙形成鮮明對(duì)比的亮白？抑或是直立的棵棵樹(shù)木那種朦朧的綠？不，不是單個(gè)的任何一種，而是所有這些的和諧組合，幫助畫(huà)家達(dá)成了最終目的：描繪一片鮮花盛開(kāi)的林間空地，那里碰巧有兩個(gè)女孩，那一刻靜謐而滿足。