Manet and the Sea

This exhibition catalogue focuses on Manet's maritime paintings. Edouard Manet (1832 -1883) was passionate about the sea. Before becoming a painter, he spent six months at sea and, like many Europeans of his era, he took numerous seaside holidays. Manet made his public debut as a marine painter at the Paris Salon of 1864 with "The Battle of the USS 'Kearsarge' and the CSS 'Alabama'", his dramatic depiction of a US Civil War naval battle off the coast of France, and he continued to paint seascapes throughout his career. These extraordinary works clearly reflect his intimate knowledge of and love for maritime vessels and the sea. "Manet and the Sea" highlights the French master's beautiful and varied seascapes. Essays by leading scholars discuss how Manet completely overturned the established academic conventions of marine painting in France. His provocative approach was equal to that of his contemporary Gustave Courbet, and his bold and innovative techniques inspired many younger artists, including Claude Monet, Berthe Morisot, James McNeill Whistler and Pierre-Auguste Renoir. Essays on these and other artists place their seascapes in relation to Manet's pictures.