ART BLOG.....The MANET DEGAS Exhibition at the Met Museum NYC: Pics

Art Gorgeous--Manet/Degas Exhibition, Metropolitan Museum of Art NYC

A couple of weeks ago, along with David, we traveled to NYC for his Birthday...for some sightseeing, the MADONNA (!) Concert and Broadway (of course!). We also wanted to go to the Met Museum to see the Manet/Degas Exhibition as well as the "Women Dressing Women" Fashion Exhibition (that blog is next!). 

Met Boys--Nick Verreos and David Paul, Metropolitan Museum of Art NYC

Manet/Degas--Metropolitan Museum of Art NYC

The exhibition is (as the Museum says) "an artistic dialogue examining the close relationship between Edouard Manet and Edgar Degas", and how they chronicled the Bourgeois life of France at the time. The exhibition closes soon (January 7, 2024) so it was a special occasion that we got to see it before closing.

Here are some photos from the wonderful exhibition:

Manet/Degas Exhibition--Metropolitan Museum of Art NYC

Sketch of Edouard Manet, Seated, Holding his Hat--by Edgar Degas (1868)

A Study for "Dejeuner sur l'herbe" (1863-68)--by Edouard Manet

Lorenzo Pagas and Auguste De Gas (1871-72), by Edgar Degas--The man on the right is the artist's brother and he is seen here listening to the Spanish singer on the left.

Family Portrait of the Bellelli Family (1858-1867), by Edgar Degas--It is a portrait of his aunt, her husband, and their two daughters. Notice the tension within them...the alienation between the sexes, the stern aunt...perhaps not a happy family.

Olympia (1863-65), by Manet--This famous painting shows a nude woman lounging as her black maid brings her flowers. The nude woman is purportedly a high-end prostitute or courtesan (the name "Olympia" was associated at the time with prostitutes), and her maid is probably bringing flowers from one of her clients. The confrontational gaze of the woman was shocking to contemporary audiences in that it shows assurance and comfort as opposed to being ashamed.

The Spanish Singer (1860), by Manet--Spain and anything associated with the country was in vogue at the time so this was a reflection of that. Though the picture was admired for its realistic detail, Manet did not disguise the fact that it was composed in a studio using a model and props. The left-handed singer holds a guitar strung for a right-handed player, and his fingering suggests that he is unfamiliar with the instrument. His outfit was fashioned from costumes that Manet kept on hand at his art studio.

The Dead Toreador (1864), by Manet--Continuing with the Spain theme, this stunning painting portrays a toreador lying dead after a bullfight. The contrast of the blood dripping from his mouth, as he holds his chest with his hand, with the beauty and elegance of his satiny silk stockings and toreador ensemble makes this painting strangely beautiful.

Lola de Valence (1862), by Manet--More Spain Love....from Manet; here is Lola de Valence, a Spanish ballet dancer, shown here in a pose reminiscent of the Goya Duquesa de Alba painting.

Repose (1871), by Manet--This famous painting shows the bored, breathless entitlement of the bourgeoisie of the time. The subject here is artist Berthe Morisot, who was married to Manet's brother. It has been commented that the sitter, albeit beautiful, and serene in her rich silk embroidered gown, is looking bored with her too-lovely of a life. 

Boating (1874), by Manet--This painting supposedly shows Manet's brother-in-law, and an unknown woman, on a boat.

In a Cafe (1876), by Degas--This painting shows a woman and a man sitting next to each other at a cafe. She is drinking absinthe (the glass with green liquid in front of her) and both are looking rather sad and lonely. The cafe is the Cafe de la Nouvelle-Athenes in Paris.

Plum Brandy (1877), by Manet--This famous painting depicts a woman sitting at a cafe in a lethargic pose, as she holds a cigarette and has her plum brandy in front of her. It has been said that the painting depicts loneliness and a rather quiet melancholic scene of a working girl (it has been argued whether or not she was a prostitute) in Paris during the time.

The Christmas Tree and Neapolitan Baroque Creche (Nativity Scene) at the Met Museum NYC

**NEXT UP: The "Women Dressing Women" Fashion Exhibition!