Manet and his Easel
1868–70 (?)
Medium
Charcoal, white chalk on blue laid paper faded to yellow-gray
Dimensions
11 5/8 × 8 7/16 in. (29.5 × 21.5 cm) Framed: 21 1/4 × 16 1/4 in. (54 × 41.3 cm)
Classification
Drawings
Department
Robert Lehman Collection
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Robert Lehman Collection, 1975
Accession Number
1975.1.569
Tags
Art Historical Context
In the late 1860s, as Paris buzzed with artistic innovation, Jean-Frédéric Bazille a rare intimate moment with his fellow painter Édouard Manet in *Manet and his Easel (ca. 186870). Bazille, a promising talent in the emerging Impressionist alongside friends like Monet and Renoir sketched Manet—then a bold modernist challenging academic traditions—at work with his easel. This small drawing offers a glimpse into the camaraderie and creative energy of avant-garde artists experimenting beyond salon conventions. Executed in charcoal and white chalk on blue laid paper (now faded to a soft yellow-gr...