The Umbrella by Pierre-Auguste Renoir

Painted in two phases during the 1880's, The Umbrellas is owned by the National Gallery in London as part of the Lane Bequest, though it is displayed alternately in London and at the Dublin City Gallery, The Hugh Lane.

The Umbrellas by Pierre-Auguste Renoir depicts a busy street scene in Paris with several people using umbrellas against the rain.

The people in the painting are not posing. To the right, a mother looks down at her daughters, both fashionably dressed in the styles of 1881 for an afternoon promenade.

A female figure at the center of the female, mostly concealed by the mother, is caught in the act or raising or lowering her umbrella, suggesting that the rain is about to begin or cease.

The main figure on the foreground is a young woman (modeled by Suzanne Valadon) who is carrying what appears to be a basket or perhaps hat box. She is looking straight at the viewer as if resigned to her fate and the oncoming rain.

A young bearded gentleman seems to be about to offer her shelter under his umbrella. She, and one of the two girls to the right with a hoop and stick, look out at the viewer, while most of the rest of the figures go about their business.
The Umbrella by Pierre-Auguste Renoir