How did Pierre-Auguste Renoir’s views about the use of black paint change after his travels?

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Pierre-Auguste Renoir Self-portrait by Pierre-Auguste Renoir, oil on canvas, 1910; in the Archives Denyse Durand-Ruel, Rueil-Malmaison, France.

Following his travels to Algeria, Italy, and Provence in 1881 and 1882, Pierre-Auguste Renoir reconsidered his approach to color. Previously, he and his fellow Impressionists had largely rejected the use of black in their work.

However, Renoir discovered that black did not deserve the negative reputation it held among his peers. He realized that, when used in certain contexts, black could produce a striking effect and provide great intensity to other colors on his palette. This shift was part of a broader move away from the systematic techniques of Impressionism toward a style that emphasized form, volume, and line, influenced by his study of Classicism and the works of Raphael.1