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The Pain Passes
When Pierre August Renoir began to develop rheumatoid arthritis in 1892, he was concerned that it might prevent him from painting his beautiful impressionist canvases. He described the pain as unbearable, and his afflictions began to claim his legs, his right shoulder and both hands. He was one of the artists leading the Impressionist movement in Europe, and he had many paintings left to complete.
Then, in 1899, a product was marketed commercially for the first time, and Renoir managed to acquire a supply of it. The difference it made in his life was remarkable, he said. He called it a miracle drug, and his joy of painting returned. He painted for another 20 years, due to the relief this pharmaceutical offered him.
In 1907, he moved to a farm near the Mediterranean coast to take advantage of the climate, and continued to paint, in both oil and with pastels, although he had to adapt his technique due to the ankylosis that had seized his right shoulder. He managed to grasp his brush between his fingers, but he fought the pain in every moment, and in every movement.
His contemporaries asked why he would continue when the act of painting caused him so much anguish.
He replied, "The pain passes; the beauty remains."
And that miracle drug? It was acetylsalicylic acid, better known as Aspirin.
