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EDOUARD MANET
Public Domain, via
Wikimedia Commons
Portrait photograph by Nadar, c. 1866–1867 |
- Édouard Manet (1832-1883) was a French modernist painter.
- He was one of the first 19th-century artists to paint modern life, as well as a pivotal figure in the transition from Realism to Impressionism.
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Born into an upper-class household with strong political connections, Manet rejected the naval career originally envisioned for him; he became engrossed in the world of painting.
- His early masterworks, The Luncheon on the Grass (French: Le Déjeuner sur l'herbe) and
Olympia, premiering in 1863 and '65, respectively, caused great controversy with both critics and the Academy of Fine Arts, but soon were praised by progressive artists as the breakthrough acts to the new style, Impressionism.
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At his father's suggestion, in 1848 he
sailed on a training vessel to Rio de Janeiro. After
he twice failed the examination to join the Navy, his
father relented to his wishes to pursue an art
education. From 1850 to 1856, Manet studied under the
academic painter Thomas Couture. Couture encouraged his students to paint contemporary life, though he would eventually be horrified by Manet's choice of lower-class and "degenerate" subjects such as The Absinthe Drinker.
(Wikipedia)
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