Renoir's own Lise [FIGURE 12] tackles much the same theme, with Figure 38 Raimundo de Madrazo the crucial difference being that the male presence is awaited, not seen. The (Spanish, 1841-1920). pose and gesture of the female figure can best be understood as one of expecta- After the Promenade, circa 1868. Oil on tion, while the tree beside which she stands in the wood bears carved initials, a canvas, size and present whereabouts unknown. standard emblem of a lovers' trysting place.63L# Promenade can readily be seen Reproduced from a as the next stage in a very similar narrative. photograph published by Goupil and Co., circa The effect of the figures in La Promenade is heightened by the way 1868. London, Witt Library, Courtauld Institute of Art. in which the composition is arranged and the lighting orchestrated. While the woman is framed by foliage and set off against the dark thicket beyond her, the man is wedged into the upper right corner of the canvas, his head tight beneath its top margin. The lighting plays a crucial role in the presentation of the scene 57