Sketches from “The Gypsies,” “The Spanish Ballet,” and “Lola de Valence” for “L’Autographe au Salon de 1865” - Édouard Manet

Gift of Dorothy Braude Edinburg to the Harry B. and Bessie K. Braude Memorial Collection

"Sketches from “The Gypsies,” “The Spanish Ballet,” and “Lola de Valence” for “L’Autographe au Salon de 1865”" by Édouard Manet (1865) Brush and black ink and wash, over graphite, on ivory laid paper, pieced in the lower left.

Commentary

"Sketches from “The Gypsies,” “The Spanish Ballet,” and “Lola de Valence” for “L’Autographe au Salon de 1865”" by Édouard Manet (1865) invites a close look at how form and feeling work together. The print-based method rewards close viewi ng, where line, texture, and contrast do most of the expressive work. Themes to notice include prints and drawing. This piece is held in the source collection's Prints and Drawings collection. Édouard Manet is the artist behind this work. A useful anchor for reading the piece: Édouard Manet French, 1832–1883. The work is cataloged within a France cultural context. How to look at this work: It is cataloged as prints and drawing, which gives a clue to how the museum frames the object. Its medium (Brush and black ink and wash, over graphite, on ivory laid paper, pieced in the lower left) affects texture, durability, and how detail reads at different distances. Its listed dimensions (18.1 × 12.7 cm (7 3/16 × 5 in.)) suggest how intimate or monumental it may feel in person. Subject cues from the catalog include prints and drawing. Compare this reading with the museum record at the source collection: https://www.artic.edu/artworks/186110

Sources: Art Institute of Chicago; Art Institute of Chicago / Public Records; Art Institute of Chicago Collection Data