Monet are spots, Manet are people: How to distinguish between two masters of impressionism

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-01-10 02:10

Their acquaintance began with a big conflict, but later they became great friends. Monet Manet is a story of long-standing friendship based on great respect and mutual assistance. When Monet was in financial difficulties, he wrote to Manet for help. Manet not only never refused to help his colleague, but after he learned about the illness of Camilla, Monet's first wife, he wrote off all of Claude's debts. Thanks to Monet's influence, Manet painted outdoors more often and brightened his palette. These were not just real people, but also great talents with big hearts.

Edouard Manet was one of the first 19th century modernist painters to turn to the subjects of modern life, he became a key figure in the transition from realism to impressionism. In addition, he was a key figure in the transition from realism to impressionism and one of the first in this era to depict modern life. Claude Monet also known as Oscar-Claude Monet was the founder of French Impressionist painting and the most consistent and fruitful practitioner of the philosophy of movement in nature. …

Artists' style

Monet and Manet had a lot in common. They are both created in the style of impressionism, although Manet was closer to realism. Edouard Manet has always been close to realism. Some art critics even considered him not an impressionist, but the first modernist. Edouard Manet did not consider himself an impressionist, but newspaper critics called him "the king of the impressionists" and young artists, future impressionists, as "Manet's team". They were both French and lived in the late 19th century.

Color / light / volume in the paintings of the masters

Monet was most interested in color and its influence on the emotions of the viewer. Therefore, if the main role in the picture is not the reliability of the objects, but the combination of light and color, then Monet is definitely in front of you, but in Edouard Manet's paintings, color is not given so much importance, in them the main factor is three-dimensional scenes, sometimes with a very complex composition. For example, "The Bar at the Folies Bergeres" has a very complex composition and incredible volume.

Color palette

Manet's works feature a palette of dark colors influenced by the Spanish Baroque artist Diego Velazquez as well as Goya. Typically, his paintings depicted social scenes, portraits, and some still lifes and landscapes. But the work of Monet has mainly a palette of bright pastel colors. One can observe a strong impressionistic tendency of the moment, of capturing light. Monet's work is mostly landscape, with the rare appearance of humans as an addition to the landscape; the main difference in color is that Manet used black in his palette. Monet and other mature Impressionists never used black.

Liberation Day of France in the paintings of Monet and Manet

One day, both artists looked out their windows. Monet was impressed with the colors and painted a red-white-blue holiday. Manet got used to noticing people on the streets and saw a slightly different picture - a one-legged soldier. They both depicted the same day in one of their paintings. It was the day of the liberation of France from the devastating Franco-Prussian war. The war took place when Napoleon's composure led to the invasion of the German Bismarck. After the defeat of Napoleon, a civil war began, which lasted 72 days, and this led to the death of thousands of people and the complete destruction of the city. France celebrated the end of the war with a festival on June 30th.

Monet's painting, Rue Montorgueil in Paris, Festival June 30, 1878, was painted to convey the feeling of the celebration that filled the streets and the liberation of the city. Flags are hung on the walls of buildings. The artist mainly uses a three-color palette: red, blue, white. Monet depicted an incredible number of human figures using only small black lines. He paints this picture as if someone is looking out of the window of a tall house and watching the holiday. Optimism, sunny weather, clear blue of the sky against the background of yellow buildings and not a hint of the sad reason for this holiday and the once destroyed city.

All this is in contrast to Manet's version, which is called "Rue Monier with flags". Here the observer is already on the ground. The artist depicted only a few people, but more clearly and with emphasis. There are also flags hanging from the buildings. His color palette is somewhat different from Monet: Manet used blue and yellow colors, diluting them with dark blue and black. Manet, unlike Monet, has an element that makes the audience understand that this holiday is part of the war. In the lower left part of the street is a cripple. Most likely, this is a victim of the war, a veteran who was injured during the brutal wars. This element fundamentally changes the feel of the painting itself. Manet decided not only to depict the celebration, but also to depict what was lost and what caused its destruction. Comparing these canvases, it seems as if Monet's painting is the height of the holiday and all the accompanying emotions of joy and delight, and Monet's painting is already the end of the holiday. As if the pink veil of Monet's holiday had erased and Manet's realism appeared, cruel and sad (in the form of a cripple). Although their ideas were so similar, their works take on incredibly different sensations. One is full of energy and excitement, while the other is more depressed and dejected. The main difference that will help viewers recognize the author - Monet are spots, Manet are people.