Spring by Edouard Manet

on Display at The Getty in L.A.

The J. Paul Getty Museum acquired Spring  (Jeanne Demarsy),1881, Édouard Manet (1832-1883), oil on canvas, 29 1/8 x 20¼ in. (74 x 51.5 cm.)

Spring was acquired at auction by the J. Paul Getty Museum on November 5, and went on public view November 25, 2014. The painting proudly shines in the West Pavilion with the Museum's collections of paintings by Degas, Monet, van Gogh and other nineteenth-century masters.

"Spring was the last of Manet's Salon paintings still in private hands, and universally recognized as one of his masterpieces," said Timothy Potts, director of the J. Paul Getty Museum. "It is a work of extraordinary quality and beauty, epitomizing Manet's influential conception of modernity, and executed at the height of his artistic powers—but also, tragically, when he was already afflicted with the illness that would soon lead to his early death. Although he did not consider himself an Impressionist, Manet was intimately associated with that circle of artists."

Together with other Manet paintings,  Spring makes the Getty a must-visit destination for anyone with a serious interest in this artist's remarkable achievement.

Spring (Jeanne Demarsy) is a portrait of Parisian actress Jeanne Demarsy (1865-1937) as the embodiment of spring. Manet intended it as the first of a series of the four seasons representing fashionable Parisian women. However, he lived long enough only to complete two of the series: Spring and Autumn (Musée des Beaux-Arts, Nancy). Spring was exhibited in the 1882 Paris Salon along with Manet's celebrated masterwork A Bar at the Folies-Bergère (Courtauld Gallery, London). Spring was perhaps the most unalloyed success of Manet's long and notorious Salon career. Critics found Jeanne utterly charming and exquisite—a highlight of Manet's career, in which he took great pride.

Having been in the collection of the same family for more than a century, the 29-by-20-inch-painting is in exceptionally fine condition. The newly acquired Manet joins the Museum's notable collection of works by the artist, which includes two paintings: the early Portrait of Madame Brunet (ca. 1861-63) and the The Rue Mosnier with Flags (1878), as well as the watercolor Bullfight (1865) and the pastel Portrait of Julien de la Rochenoire (1882).  #

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A stunning portrait of a Parisian actress by Edouard Manet sold for $65 million at auction in New York on Wednesday, a record for a work by the French impressionist artist. The painting entitled 'Spring' was sold at Christie's Wednesday evening for $65 million, almost doubling the previous record of $33.2 million for the French impressionist. Spring is considered to be a Manet masterpiece and was first presented at the 1882 Paris Salon. It depicts actress Jeanne Demarsy in a floral dress and bonnet as an evocation of spring. Manet's painting 'Le Printemps' at Christie's Auction House in London before it was auctioned in New York as part of a sale of Impressionist and Modern artworks Manet had intended allegorical works of the four seasons but only completed Spring and Autumn. One of the leading artists of the impressionist movement, he was famous for his portraits and scenes from everyday life. He died in 1883 at 51. 'Spring' has been in the same American collection for over a century and has been on loan at the National Gallery of Art for the last two decades.