Description
Finely dressed and carrying an elegant walking stick, influential French artist Édouard Manet appears before a stark background evocative of his own paintings as well as photographic portraits of the time. Created by his friend Henri Fantin-Latour, this depiction confronted the public perception of Manet as a radical bohemian painter of coarse and confrontational compositions (for an example of this, see his Jesus Mocked by the Soldiers). Fantin-Latour instead portrayed him as the genteel man-about-town he actually was.
Provenance
Inherited by Edouard Manet’s wife, Suzanne Manet, Paris to at least 1889 [lent to Paris, 1889]; possibly Camentron, Paris [acc. to Paris 1983]. Gustave Tempelaere with Allard and Noel, Paris, by 1900; sold to Durand-Ruel, Paris, 1900 [Durand-Ruel photo no. 938, stock no. 5666]; sold to the Art Institute, 1905.
Accession Number
87467
Medium
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
117.5 × 90 cm (46 1/4 × 35 7/16 in.); Framed: 143.6 × 115 × 11.5 cm (56 1/2 × 45 1/4 × 4 1/2 in.)
Classification
oil on canvas
Credit Line
Stickney Fund
Background & Context
Background Story
Henri Fantin-Latour's portrait of Edouard Manet (1867) is an oil on canvas portrait of his fellow artist and friend Edouard Manet (1832-1883). Fantin-Latour painted several portraits of Manet, and this work captures the portrait of the controversial painter who was then the leader of the avant-garde. Manet is shown in three-quarter view, his expression direct and engaging, his features rendered with Fantin-Latour's characteristic precision and psychological insight. The palette is restrained, with the dark tones of Manet's costume set against a neutral background, focusing attention on his face and hands. This portrait belongs to the period when Fantin-Latour was at the center of the Parisian art world, friendly with both the Impressionists and the more traditional artists, and his portraits of his contemporaries are among the most valuable documents of the period.
Cultural Impact
Fantin-Latour's portraits of his fellow artists provide an invaluable visual record of the personalities who shaped the Parisian art world of the 19th century.
Why It Matters
This portrait of Edouard Manet captures the intelligence and determination of the revolutionary painter, Fantin-Latour's precise technique and psychological insight creating a vivid image of one of the most important figures in modern art.
