Creator story
Surprising fact
Olympia caused such fury at the 1865 Salon that guards had to protect it from visitors trying to attack the canvas.
Source: Wikipedia / WikimediaRealism
Édouard Manet
Édouard Manet (1832–1883) was the pivotal figure between Realism and Impressionism, whose scandalous modern subjects shattered academic convention. Olympia and the Déjeuner sur l'herbe outraged Paris and changed painting forever.
Though he never exhibited with the Impressionists, Manet was their inspiration and leader, the bridge to modern art.
- His Déjeuner sur l'herbe and Olympia scandalised Paris with frank, modern nudity.
- Bridged Realism and Impressionism, inspiring Monet, Degas and Renoir.
- Painted modern life — cafés, bars, city crowds — instead of myth and history.
Key works
Three entry points into the world of Édouard Manet
These works make it easiest to see how the artist changed form, content, and the very way art could exist in culture.
1882
A Bar at the Folies-Bergère Sharon
A Bar at the Folies-Bergère is a painting by Édouard Manet, considered to be his last major work. It was painted in 1882 and exhibited at the Paris Salon of that year. It depicts a scene in the Folies Bergère nightclub in Paris.
1863
Luncheon on the Grass
In Luncheon on the Grass, Édouard Manet makes the structure, scale, and logic of realism especially legible.
1863
Olympia
Olympia reads as one of the anchor works of realism, where Édouard Manet's visual voice becomes unmistakable.