There are two aspects of this painting that fascinate me.
First, I love paintings that tell a story of the time during which they were created. Renoir depicts a luncheon a time of relaxation in the lives of a group of Renoir's friends. They are by the Seine at the Maison Fournaise restaurant in Chatou. The painting provides an insight into how Parisians dresses at the time, how they socialized, and what they enjoyed doing in their free time. During Renoir's times, the society was changing - different social groups started to mingle - and this restaurant welcomed them all. We can see business men, artists, seamstresses, and writers here.