Born on January 23, 1832, Édouard Manet came from a wealthy family residing in the Saint-Germain-des-Prés district in Paris. After attending the Institut Poiloup, he began to study drawing at the age of 12 at the reputable Collége Rollin. After being rejected by the Marine Academy, he received his academic education under Thomas Couture at the Academy of Fine Arts.
However, he eventually broke away from the classicism of the Academy and Couture, leaving after six years to set up his own studio with Albert de Balleroy. Unsatisfied with the conventional art of Couture, which lacked the freedom of randomness, he began exploring alternative forms of expression. He found inspiration at the Louvre and during trips to The Netherlands, Germany, Italy, and Spain.
“The Absinthe Drinker,” regarded as his first independent painting, was rejected by the Paris Salon’s jury in 1859. “The Spanish Singer” was more successful, receiving an honorable mention from the Salon jury in 1861.
In 1863, Manet created two major works, “Luncheon on the Grass” and “Olympia.” They were met with both radical disdain, being described as scandalous, mocked, and ridiculed, as well as recognition and sudden fame.
His standing within the emerging avant-garde began to take effect and those with a thirst for change gathered around him. The desire for freedom, a new social order, a new doctrine, a new art form- all of this eventually united a group of artists, which initially started as a small circle (including Baudelaire, Cezanne, Zola, and Berthe Morisot) and grew so large that he was proclaimed as the “king of the impressionists,” although he did not consider himself as belonging to this style.
From 1870, Manet worked closely with Claude Monet and was inspired to paint outdoors.
Edouard Manet passed away on April 30, 1883 as a result of a leg amputation.
http://www.ftn-books.com has several books on Manet and his impressionist friends available.
