woman's gesture or to her relationship to the two men. Renoir confused the Figure 45 Pierre-Auguste Renoir. potential narrative even further by the inclusion of the child. The artist told his Confidences, 1875. Oil on canvas, 81.3 X 60.3 friend Georges Riviere that the youngster, who had been watching Renoir paint, cm (32 x 233/4 in.). was inserted into the picture without being aware of it.79 Portland, Maine, The Portland Museum of Art, Likewise, Renoir's great image of riverside entertainments, The Joan Whitney Payson Collection, Gift of Luncheon of the Boating Party (Dejeuner des canotiers] [FIGURE 49] of 1881, is par- Joan Whitney Payson, ticularly resistant to anecdotal readings, despite the fact that the theme of cano- 1991.62. tiers was inextricably linked, in popular mythology, with narratives of amorous Figure 46 Pierre-Auguste Renoir. interchange and sexual intrigue. Even the most apparently legible grouping can The Lovers, 1875. Oil on be understood in two quite different ways: is the woman at back right closing canvas, 175 x 130 cm (68% x 51Vs in.). her ears to the blandishments of the man who has his arm around her (his hat is Prague, Narodni Galerie, no. 0 3201. startlingly like that worn by the man in La Promenade], or is she simply adjust- ing her hat before leaving? 73