A Review, by A. Crossland.
Edouard Manet’s artistic mission was to radicalise
artistic production and make it relevant to the rapidly modernising world of
Paris in the later part of the nineteenth century. Although Classically trained
under the grand history painter Thomas Couture, Manet did not need to conform
to the strict hierarchy of genre that usually defined artistic success at this
time (do look at my entry on Alexandre Cabanel to see what kind of art usually
made waves at the annual Salon). Manet had a private income of considerable means;
he was a member of the affluent bourgeoisie class whose ‘leisure time’ would
become one of the main and most important themes in the artist’s work.
Without needing to paint for money, Manet had the
freedom to paint what he dared. He also had the means to support other artists
who he felt shared his modern and progressive values. This is crucial to the
knock on effect Manet would have, because without these components the building
blocks of the artistic and literary world which Manet helped to foster could
not have been built. Working together, supporting each other, posing for each
other, buying each other’s works, buying each other drinks, by sharing this
lifestyle their image of the modern world could be projected onto canvas and
paper. The stagnant and repressive world of the Salon would not know what hit
it. What is even more impressive is that Manet’s work was actually seen in
these upper class elitist spheres that his works sought to contradict. They
weren’t hidden away in the backwater atelier of an impoverished artist; Manet’s
paintings were making headline news.
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| The Luncheon, 1868, one of the stars of the R.A.'s new show |
Manet’s brashness, and his fearless application of
the human form on canvas, would pave the way for artists representing the
modern world for generations to come. Usually saying someone is the ‘Father of
modern art’ is a rather clichéd overstatement, but in Manet’s case, it is more
than likely to be true. Impressionists like Monet and Degas owe a lot of their
subject matter and technique to Manet. The fact that Manet, although repeatedly
asked, never exhibited with the Impressionists, undoubtedly set him apart. Perhaps
he could foresee the great impact his work would have in the wider artistic
sense, and did not want to be grouped into any specific artistic movement. Or
perhaps he just could not bear to give up his use of black, something the
Impressionists did not believe in.
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| The Swallows, 1873 |
The exhibition at the Royal Academy, ‘Manet:
Portraying Life’ states that it is the first exhibition focusing solely on the
role of portraiture in Manet’s oeuvre. To begin with I found this strange, as
for me the main bulk of Manet’s work has used models and muses, sometimes solo
and sometimes, as in ‘The Luncheon’, in groups. By default that would make any
major retrospective on Manet about
portraiture. Having visited the exhibition, I actually think this was a clever
way of highlighting just how much Manet was obsessed with displaying people, jobs,
social positions and hierarchies, all with the aim of showing just how false a façade
of the modern world this created. The inclusion of photographs of many of the
sitters in Manet’s works was perhaps the most interesting part of the
exhibition for me. Although it is not clear whether Manet ever worked directly
from photographic stills, it is clear that he was inspired by their ‘snapshot’
quality, their ability to capture the essence of a pose, a costume, an action,
and seal it forever in a two-dimensional space.
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| The Amazon, c.1882. This work was also at the Manet retrospective in Paris a few years ago, and so was a welcome face to me. |
Critics of this exhibition have been raving about ‘The
Luncheon’, which includes his son/brother/newphew/godson Léon-Edouard Köella
Leenhoff. For me this works seems rather static and overworked in comparison
with the exquisite ‘The Swallows’, in which Manet has perfectly captured the wind gently sweeping over the meadow, turning the windmill and making the
two ladies sitting on the ground bow
their heads. Or in complete comparison my other favourite from this exhibition
is ‘The Amazon’, a fantastically poised portrait of a strong and confident
woman. In this work black is used not to hide Manet's muse but to accentuate
her feline figure and her glamorous top hat. Her reddened lips pursed, perhaps
holding an even blacker whip against her blacked out body, she is the ultimate nineteenth
century upper class dominatrix; and a total showstopper.
'Manet: Portraying Life' runs at the Royal Academy, London from the 26nd January to 14th April 2013. Adult gift aid £17, OAP £14, Student £10 http://www.royalacademy.org.uk/
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