Leo Martínez
Édouard Manet was a French painter who became engrossed in the world of painting after initially being destined for a naval career. Manet's early works, including 'Le déjeuner sur l'herbe' and 'Olympia', were considered shocking and immoral by contemporary critics and the public. Manet's model for these works, Victorine Meurent, became known by name, which was unusual for the time. Manet also painted his wife, Suzanne Leenhoff, at least thirteen times. Manet's wife was described by Giuseppe de Nittis as having the gift of kindness, simplicity, candour of spirit; an unruffled serenity.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Number of times Manet painted his wife | 13 |
| Names of paintings featuring Manet's wife | The Reading, The Norton Simon portrait |
| Names of models | Victorine Meurent, Méry Laurent, Berthe Morisot, Isabelle Lemonnier, Laure |
| Manet's models were | Professional models, women glimpsed on the street, artists, lovers, and friends |
| Manet's models posed as | Cherry-eater, red-headed matador, guitarist, nanny, nude picnicker, prostitute, Venus |
| Manet's paintings that stirred controversy | Luncheon on the Grass, Olympia |
| Reason for controversy | Viewers were shocked by the familiarity with the identity of the models |
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What You'll Learn
- Manet's wife, Suzanne Leenhoff, was the subject of at least 13 portraits
- Victorine Meurent, Manet's favourite model, posed for eight works
- Manet's models included professional artists, like Berthe Morisot, who he painted 11 times
- Manet's models were also friends, lovers, and women glimpsed on the street
- Manet's paintings often depicted Parisian street scenes and social life in the 19th century
Manet's wife, Suzanne Leenhoff, was the subject of at least 13 portraits
Leenhoff was the subject of several notable portraits by Manet, including "Madame Manet at Bellevue" (c. 1880) and "Madame Edouard Manet" (c. 1883-1894). These portraits are known for their intimate and spontaneous depiction of Leenhoff, with visible bare canvas and masterful brushstrokes capturing her likeness with immediacy.
Manet often revised his portraits, and this is evident in the studies and sketches related to his portraits of Leenhoff. The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York possesses several preparatory works for "Madame Edouard Manet", including sketches of Leenhoff's figure and background, as well as revisions of her facial features.
Manet's portraits of his wife showcase his working method of first sketching the body and then focusing on the face. This approach is seen in "Madame Edouard Manet", where he began by drawing the figure and background with broad strokes before turning to the facial features.
Manet's depictions of Leenhoff provide a rare insight into his artistic technique, as half of the portraits he created of her were left unfinished. These incomplete works, such as "Madame Manet at Bellevue", reveal the artist's process of revision and his focus on capturing the essence of his subject.
Manet's portraits of his wife, Suzanne Leenhoff, are significant not only for their intimate portrayal of the artist's spouse but also for their insight into Manet's creative process and experimentation with form and technique. These works contribute to our understanding of Manet's innovative approach to portraiture and his enduring legacy in the history of art.
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Victorine Meurent, Manet's favourite model, posed for eight works
Victorine Meurent was Édouard Manet's favourite model. She posed for eight works, including his renowned masterpieces, "Olympia" and "Luncheon on the Grass". Meurent was a professional cancan dancer and artist in her own right. She modelled for Manet from 1862 until the early 1870s, when she began taking art classes, and the two became estranged.
Meurent was born in 1844 and came from a working-class family. Her mother was a milliner, and her father was a patinator of bronzes. She began modelling in the studio of Thomas Couture at the age of sixteen. She was particularly noticeable for her petite stature, which earned her the nickname "La Crevette" (The Shrimp), and for her bright red hair.
Meurent was the model for two of Manet's most famous works, "Olympia" and "Luncheon on the Grass", both of which feature nude portrayals of her. "Olympia" was exhibited in Paris in 1865 and scandalised both the public and the art community with its depiction of a defiant nude presumed to be a sex worker. Meurent became scandalously known by name, which was unusual for models at the time. "Luncheon on the Grass" was Manet's first painting to feature Meurent, and it was completed between 1862 and 1863.
In the eight works that Manet painted of Meurent, she appeared as a cherry-eater, a red-headed matador, a guitarist, and a nanny. In addition to "Olympia" and "Luncheon on the Grass", Meurent also posed for "The Railway", also known as "The Gare Saint-Lazare", in 1873. In this painting, she sits before an iron fence, holding a sleeping puppy and an open book in her lap. Manet's use of Meurent as a model in this painting was his last; by this time, the two had fallen out over Meurent's desire to become an artist herself.
Meurent's work as an artist was included in the prestigious Paris Salon multiple times, a notable feat for a woman of her class. She also exhibited her work at the Académie des Beaux-Arts in 1879 and was inducted into the Société des Artistes Français in 1903.
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Manet's models included professional artists, like Berthe Morisot, who he painted 11 times
Édouard Manet was a French modernist painter who is often credited with bridging the gap between Realism and Impressionism, two of the most important art movements of the 19th century. Manet's early works, such as "Le déjeuner sur l'herbe" (The Luncheon on the Grass) and "Olympia", caused controversy with their rejection of traditional artistic subjects and their innovative colour compositions. Manet's models included professional artists, like Berthe Morisot, who he painted 11 times between 1868 and 1874. Manet and Morisot met at the Louvre and became close friends. Morisot was a fellow Impressionist painter and a member of the Batignolles group, which included artists such as Edgar Degas, Claude Monet, and Pierre-Auguste Renoir. Manet was influenced by Morisot and other Impressionists, adopting a lighter colour palette and embracing plein-air painting.
Manet's paintings of Morisot never depicted her as an artist. Instead, she is shown in various domestic settings, such as reclining on a sofa or gazing from a balcony. One of Manet's most famous paintings of Morisot is "Berthe Morisot with a Bouquet of Violets" (1872), which showcases his fearless use of black, a colour avoided by the Impressionists at the time. Morisot holds a bouquet of violets that blend into the dark folds of her dress, creating a dramatic interplay of light and shadow. This painting is considered a masterpiece by Manet's contemporaries and later critics.
Manet's relationship with Morisot is a subject of speculation. There are theories about a romantic infatuation between the two, but Morisot ultimately married Manet's younger brother, Eugène, after which Manet never painted her again. This has led to the interpretation that Manet's numerous portraits of Morisot before her marriage to Eugène express a repressed love. Manet's other paintings of women have also been interpreted as challenging traditional depictions and expressing psychological complexity.
In addition to Morisot, Manet had other notable models, including Victorine Meurent, who was his favourite model between 1862 and 1872. Meurent appeared in eight of Manet's works, including his famous "Luncheon on the Grass" and "Olympia", in which she posed nude, creating a scandal and becoming known by name, which was unusual for models at the time. Another of Manet's frequent models was Méry Laurent, who posed for seven portraits in pastel and hosted salons that Manet attended to connect with writers and painters.
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Manet's models were also friends, lovers, and women glimpsed on the street
Manet's models were from all walks of life, including friends, lovers, artists, and women glimpsed on the street. One of Manet's favourite models was Victorine Meurent, who posed for eight of his paintings, including two of his most famous works, "Le Déjeuner sur l'herbe" ("Luncheon on the Grass") and "Olympia", both of which caused a stir when they were first exhibited. Meurent was an artist in her own right and exhibited multiple times in the Paris Salon. She was also a working-class woman who modelled for other artists to support herself in Paris. In Manet's paintings, she is depicted as a cherry-eater, a red-headed matador, a guitarist, a nanny, and a woman picnicking in the nude.
Manet also painted his wife, Suzanne Leenhoff, at least thirteen times, including in "The Reading". Their son, Leon Leenhoff, also posed often for Manet, most famously in "Boy Carrying a Sword" (1861). Manet's other models included Berthe Morisot, whom he painted eleven times between 1868 and 1874. Morisot was an accomplished professional artist who exhibited in the Paris Salon and Impressionist exhibitions. Manet and Morisot met at the Louvre when they were both copying paintings, and there are theories about a romantic infatuation between the two. However, Morisot ended up marrying Manet's younger brother, Eugène, after which Manet never painted her again.
Another model was Méry Laurent, who posed for seven portraits in pastel at the beginning of the 1880s. Laurent was a "semimondaine", a term for a courtesan or a woman of ill repute. She hosted salons that attracted writers and painters, which Manet attended to gain connections and influence. Manet also painted people he saw on the street, as seen in his street scenes of Paris, such as "Rue Mosnier Decked with Flags" and "Rue Mosnier with Pavers".
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Manet's paintings often depicted Parisian street scenes and social life in the 19th century
Édouard Manet was born in Paris on 23 January 1832 and became a French modernist painter. He was one of the first 19th-century artists to paint modern life, capturing the mood and feeling of Parisian life and its people. Manet's paintings often depicted Parisian street scenes and social life in the 19th century, observing the social life of 19th-century Paris.
Manet's paintings of café scenes are a prime example of his interest in contemporary Parisian leisure activities. His paintings of people drinking beer, listening to music, flirting, reading, or waiting are observations of social life in 19th-century Paris. For instance, in "The Plum," Manet paints a dejected but rosy prostitute sitting alone in a cafe, nursing a brandied plum dessert. Manet often visited the Brasserie Reichshoffen on boulevard de Rochechourt, which inspired his 1878 painting, "At the Cafe." In "Corner of a Café-Concert," a man smokes while a waitress serves drinks behind him. Manet's paintings of cafes are snapshots of bohemianism, urban working people, and the bourgeoisie.
Manet also depicted the streets of Paris in his works. For instance, "Rue Mosnier Decked with Flags" shows a street decorated with red, white, and blue pennants covering the buildings on either side. "Rue Mosnier with Pavers" depicts the same street but in a different context, with men repairing the roadway while people and horses move past. "The Railway," widely known as "The Gare Saint-Lazare," was painted in 1873 and captures the urban landscape of Paris in the late 19th century. Manet's paintings of Parisian street scenes and social life were often based on sketches executed on the spot.
In addition to street scenes and social life, Manet also painted portraits and marine scenes. His subject matter ranged from the traditional, such as "Mademoiselle Victorine in the Costume of an Espada," to the more controversial, such as Luncheon on the Grass and Olympia, which caused a stir with their eroticism and challenging of social norms. These works are considered watershed paintings that mark the start of modern art. Manet's paintings, with their tongue-in-cheek eclecticism and disregard for propriety, shattered conventions of realism and decorum, turning art history on its head.
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Frequently asked questions
Yes, Manet painted his wife, Suzanne Leenhoff, at least 13 times. One of these paintings, "The Reading", features a model's head.
Manet's wife was Suzanne Leenhoff, a talented pianist who joined the Manet household in 1849 as a music teacher and married Manet in 1863.
Manet's paintings of his wife captured her "unguarded likeness with unstudied immediacy". He left portions of the canvas bare and used masterful single strokes for key lines.
Manet's favourite model was Victorine Meurent, who posed for eight of his paintings, including "Luncheon on the Grass" and "Olympia". He also painted Berthe Morisot 11 times, and his wife's son, Leon Leenhoff, posed often for Manet.
