ManetParis 1832‐1883
Articles
See what Manet recognized in Titian and how we can then learn it from Manet
Titian’s Venus (c.1548-9) and Manet’s Olympia (1863)
See how Le Dejeuner sur L’Herbe, Manet's first great masterpiece, which has always puzzled and fascinated its viewers makes sense after all.
Manet’s Le Dejeuner sur l’Herbe (1863)
This early painting by Manet has always troubled interpreters because it seems to make no apparent sense. Its explanation here, though, will help you understand paintings by Manet, Velazquez and other artists too.
Manet’s Mlle. V in the Costume of an Espada (1862)
Learn something about Manet's first major painting that has never been noted, except by artists.
Manet’s Absinthe Drinker (1858-9)
See how both Manet and Chardin veil their meaning in the same way
Manet’s and Chardin’s Soap Bubbles (18th/19th Cent.)
One of the many ways artists "paint themselves" is by painting others as earlier great masters.
Manet’s Angelina (1865)
Learn how Manet's crooked arms, repetitively appearing in his art, each come with meaning
Manet’s At the Prado
See how Manet identifies with a female artist of his own acquaintance, probably without her even knowing
Manet’s Before the Mirror (1876)
Everyone knows that Boating is a masterpiece. Why is it so difficult to explain?
Manet’s Boating (1874)
Léon Leenhof, Manet's young son, is posed in this print as though he is selecting paint from his tray (palette) and is about to apply it to the sheet of paper we are looking at.
Manet’s Boy Carrying a Tray (1860-61)
This curious painting by Manet makes little sense until the viewer uses the idea that every painter paints himself
Manet’s Boy with a Sword (1861)
Artists do not have to use their own features in a portrait of someone else. There are other ways of identifying with the sitter as Manet demonstrates in this portrait.
Manet’s Boy with Cherries (1860)
Find out how Manet's observations of scenes in Parisian cafés are really something else entirely
Manet’s Café-Concert (1878)
Familiarize yourself with an artist's early copies after other masters. They will be a key to later work.
Manet’s Croquet at Boulogne (1871)
Art scholars have sometimes wondered why the execution squad in Manet's Execution of Emperor Maximillian are so unrealistically close to their target. Indeed, on close inspection, their rifles are aimed as though they would miss.
Manet’s Execution of Emperor Maximillian (1867-8)
A wonderful example of how blind anyone can be using the wrong form of visual perception
Manet’s Exhibition of Paintings (c. 1876)
See how Manet's son uses a cigarette to paint the image in the wimdow
Manet’s Interior at Arachon (1871)
Find out how the viewer in this garden scene is really inside Manet's mind
Manet’s Monet Family in the Garden (1874)
Leran how the initials of an artist's name can appear anywhere. Not all is what it seems.
Manet’s Monet Painting on His Studio Boat (1874)
Don't forget to imagine what can't be seen: the artist's viewpoint
Manet’s Music in the Tuileries (1862)
This etching of an Odalisque by Manet could easily be interpreted as just a variation on a popular theme, an oriental woman reclining. Look carefully, though, and she becomes a painter.
Manet’s Odalisque
How remembering an artist's pose helps identify an alter ego
Manet’s Portrait of Antonin Proust (1880)
See how Manet's identification with Courbet is recognized by a later artist who then used it in his portrait of yet another artist.
Manet’s Portrait of Courbet
Learn how one artist shows their identification with another
Manet’s Self-Portrait with a Skull-Cap (1878-9)
Skating on ice is like drawing lines on the mirrored surface of the artist's mind
Manet’s Skating (1877)
Keep an eye out for smoke. It's a common symbol for the imagination and the creation of art.
Manet’s Smokers
How an unfinished painting is finished and how a horse becomes an easel
Manet’s The Horsewoman (1875)
Once you know what to look for, Manet's tricks are obvious
Manet’s The Races in the Bois de Boulogne (1872)
See how smoke and mirrors turn the outside of Manet's studio into the inside
Manet’s The Railway (1873)
A good example of how the "errors" in a painting are really the key to its meaning
Manet’s The Spanish Singer (1860)
This magical composition hides a complex thought of seeming effortless construction: a masterpiece of the first order
Manet’s Tragic Actor (1865-6) Part 1
There is more to the Tragic Actor than meets the eye. Find out what's there that others cannot see.
Manet’s Tragic Actor (1865-6) Part 2
Discover how Manet's backgrounds are often "paintings"
Manet’s View of the Universal Exhibition (1867)
EPPH Blog Posts on Manet
Essay PDFs
An early discovery (2003) crucial to the EPPH paradigm
Manet’s Le Déjeuner and Mlle. V. Simply Explained
Galleries
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