The Fifer |
Manet, the French artist – not to be
confused with Monet who was a friend of his – was born in 1832. He didn't have a very long life – he died at
the age of 51. But he wasn't a
struggling artist either – he came from a well off family and lived off his
inheritance.
Gare St Lazare |
Manet was
what the French call a 'boulevardier' – ie he enjoyed sauntering around town,
dressed very nattily, and hung out with his artistic mates in cafes.
The Plum |
He was a
disappointed artist during his lifetime though.
He struggled for all his career to get establishment recognition and
acclaim but rather received much ridicule.
This is hard to understand from today's perspective when he is generally
recognised as one of the great artists of all time.
I have put
his 2 most famous paintings – Le Dejeuner sur L'Herbe and Olympia right at the
bottom of this post – they do contain nudity so don't scroll down if you don't
want to see them. But, actually I think
I like other paintings of his better.
A Bar at the Folies Bergere |
Manet was
one of the first painters to depict real life instead of historical
scenes. He married a Dutch piano
teacher.
He was a
friend of the Impressionists but always insisted that he wasn't one himself.
He became
famous quite shortly after his death in 1883.
Warning the
pics after this contain nude women.
Le Dejeuner sur L'Herbe |
Olympia |
It's rare to hear about many well off artists. I like The Fifer. I enjoy looking at Art and reading Historical novels about Art.
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