White Lilacs in a Crystal Vase
Framed: 31 1/4 x 22 1/2 x 3 1/2 inches (79.38 x 57.15 x 8.89 cm)
- 127
Exposition des Œuvres de Édouard Manet , École Nationale des Beaux-Arts, Paris, January 6–28, 1884, no. 101, as Lilas blancs.
The Exhibition of the Paintings of Mr. Pertuiset, The Lion Slayer , Gainsborough Gallery, London, 1889, no. 43, as Les lilas.
Manet, 1832–1883 , Musée de l’Orangerie, Paris, June 16–October 9, 1932, no. 83, as Lilas dans un Vase de Cristal.
Honderd jaar Fransche kunst tentoonstelling / Un siècle de peinture française , Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, July 2–September 25, 1938, no. 163, as Lilas dans un vase de cristal.
La Pintura Francesa de David a nuestros días: Oleos, Dibujos, y Acuarelas , Salón Nacional de Bellas Artes, Montevideo, Uruguay, September 1939, no. 15; Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes, Buenos Aires, October–December 1939, no. 88, as Lilas en un Vaso de Cristal.
The Painting of France Since the French Revolution , M. H. De Young Memorial Museum, San Francisco, December 1940–January 1941, and November 1941–January 1942, no. 68, as Lilacs in a Crystal Vase.
French Painting from David to Toulouse-Lautrec: Loans from French and American Museums and Collections , Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, February 6–March 26, 1941, no. 83, as Lilacs in a Crystal Vase.
Masterpieces of French Art , Art Institute of Chicago, April 10–May 20, 1941, no. 98, as Lilacs in a Crystal Vase.
Natures Mortes Françaises du XVIIe Siècle à nos Jours , Galerie Charpentier, Paris, December 1951, no. 106, as Les lilas .
Vier Eeuwen Stilleven in Frankrijk , Museum Boymans, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, July 10–September 20, 1954, no. 90, as Seringen in een kristallen vaas / Lilas dans une vase de cristal.
Peinture et Impressionnisme de Géricault à Monet , Galerie Alfred Daber, Paris, June 7–July 7, 1956, no. 16, as Lilas dans un vase de cristal.
Fem Sekler Fransk Konst: Miniatyrer, Målningar, Teckningar, 1400–1900 , Nationalmuseum, Stockholm, August 15–November 9, 1958, no. 145, as Kristallvas med Syrener / Lilas dans un vase de cristal.
Manet to Matisse: Impressionist Masters from the Marion and Henry Bloch Collection , The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO, June 9–September 9, 2007, no. 2, as White Lilacs in a Crystal Vase (Lilas blancs dans un vase de cristal) .
Manet and Modern Beauty, Art Institute of Chicago, May 26–September 7, 2019; J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles, October 1, 2019–January 5, 2020, no. 86, as White Lilacs in a Crystal Vase.
In the last year of his life, while seriously ill and confined to his home, Edouard Manet painted at least 20 floral still-life paintings. From his bedside, he painted the bouquets brought by his closest friends. The restraint and simplicity of these compositions highlight their true subject: the artist’s masterful, seemingly effortless application of paint that defies the difficult circumstances in which they were made.
Purchased from the artist by Eugène Pertuiset (ca. 1831–1909), Paris, by April 30, 1883–at least 1889 [1];
Victor Guillaume Chocquet (1821–1891), Paris, no later than April 7, 1891;
Inherited by his wife, Augustine Marie Caroline Chocquet (née Buisson, 1837–1899), Paris, 1891–March 24, 1899;
Purchased at her posthumous sale, Tableaux Modernes par Cézanne, Courbet, Delacroix, Manet, Monet, Renoir, Sisley, Tassaert: Aquarelles et Dessins, Objets d’Art et d’Ameublement Anciennes Porcelaines Tendres de Sèvres; Porcelaines et Faïences diverses, Orfèvrerie; Pendules et Bronzes du XVIIIe Siècle; Sièges et Meubles des Époques Louis XV et Louis XVI , Galerie Georges Petit, Paris, July 1, 1899, lot 68, as Fleurs, through Georges Petit, Paris, by Martine-Marie-Pol, comtesse de Béarn (née de Béhague, 1870–1939), 1899–January 29, 1939 [2];
By descent to her nephew, Octave Marie Hubert, 7th marquis de Ganay (1888–1974), Paris, 1939–at least 1958 [3];
Probably by descent to his son, comte André de Ganay (b. 1924), Paris, by 1975–1986 [4];
Purchased from de Ganay by Alex Reid and Lefèvre Ltd., London, 1986–1987 [5];
Purchased from Alex Reid and Lefèvre Ltd. through Susan L. Brody Associates, New York, by Marion (née Helzberg, 1931–2013) and Henry (1922–2019) Bloch, Shawnee Mission, KS, August 20, 1987–June 15, 2015;
Given by Henry and Marion Bloch to The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO, 2015.
NOTES:
[1] See Léon Leenhoff, “Manet [ensemble de notes et de documents sur le peintre; recueillis et transcrits par Léon Leenhoff],” 1900–10, Bibliothèque nationale de France, département Estampes et photographie, RESERVE 8-YB3-2401, p. 82, as Lilas. The painting appears under “1882,” but it is unclear when Manet actually sold the work to Pertuiset. The painting appeared in the April 27, 1888 sale, Œuvres de Pertuiset et de Manet Formant la Collection Particulière de M. Pertuiset , at the Hôtel Drouot, Paris, but appears to have been bought in by Pertuiset.
[2] See annotated copy of the auction catalogue at the Art Institute of Chicago; see also A[dolphe] Tabarant, Manet et ses Œuvres (Paris: Gallimard, 1947), 462.
[3] See letter from Armand Losengard Gérant, Maison Duveen Brothers, Paris, to Duveen Brothers, New York, February 3, 1939, in which he writes, “We have been informed that she left her collection to her favorite nephew, Hubert de Ganay.” “Files regarding works of art: Behagle [sic], Comtesse de, Galerie Georges Petit Sale; ca. 1927–1939,” Getty Research Institute, Los Angeles, Duveen Brothers records, 1876-1981 (bulk 1909-1964), Series II, Correspondence and papers, Series II.A. Files regarding works of art.
[4] The first publication to cite comte André de Ganay as owner ofWhite Lilacs is Denis Rouart and Daniel Wildenstein, Edouard Manet: Catalogue raisonné, vol. 1, Peintures (Lausanne: Bibliothèque des Arts, 1975), 302.
[5] A reference number in the photograph stock album (86/1/89) suggests that Reid and Lefèvre acquired this work in 1986. It was purchased from André de Ganay. Tate Archive, London, Lefevre Gallery, London records, TGA 200211, photograph stock album. See correspondence from Darragh O’Donoghue, Tate Library and Archive, London, to Glynnis Stevenson, NAMA, October 30, 2018, and correspondence from Alexander Corcoran, Lefevre Fine Art, to MacKenzie Mallon, NAMA, March 18, 2019, NAMA curatorial files.
Fernand Lochard, “Reproductions d’Œuvres d’Edouard Manet,” ed. Léon Leenhoff, 1883–1884, photograph album with annotations, Bibliothèque nationale de France, Paris, département Estampes et photographie, 4-DC-300 (H), no. 48, (repro.), as Vase de fleurs.
Fernand Lochard, “Reproductions d’Œuvres d’Edouard Manet (peintures, tableaux de 1880 à 1883),” ed. Léon Leenhoff, 1883–1884, photograph album with annotations, Bibliothèque nationale de France, Paris, département Estampes et photographie, 4-DC-300 (G, 4), no. 386, (repro.).
Exposition des Œuvres de Édouard Manet , exh. cat. (Paris: Imprimerie de A. Quantin, 1884), 56, as Lilas blancs.
Anatole Godet, “Exposition rétrospective de l’œuvre d’Édouard Manet, Paris, École des beaux-arts, 6 au 28 janvier 1884,” 1884, photograph album, Bibliothèque nationale de France, Paris, département Estampes et photographie, 4-DC-300 (F,1), folio 21, (repro.).
Tableaux Modernes: aquarelles, dessins, miniatures, sculptures, porcelains, bronzes, meubles (Paris: Hotel Drouot, April 27, 1888), 12, as Lilas blancs.
“Tableaux modernes,” La Chronique des arts et de la curiosité: supplement à la Gazette des beaux-arts 20 (May 19, 1888): 153, as Lilas blancs.
The Exhibition of the Paintings of Mr. Pertuiset, The Lion Slayer
, exh. cat. (London: William Clowes and Sons, 1889), 16, as Les lilas.
Catalogue des Tableaux Modernes par Cézanne, Courbet, Delacroix, Manet, Monet, Renoir, Sisley, Tassaert: Aquarelles et Dessins, Objets d’Art et d’Ameublement Anciennes Porcelaines Tendres de Sèvres; Porcelaines et Faïences diverses, Orfèvrerie; Pendules et Bronzes du XVIIIe Siècle; Sièges et Meubles des Époques Louis XV et Louis XVI , exh. cat. (Paris: Galerie Georges Petit, 1899), 16, 45, as Fleurs.
Léon Leenhoff, “Manet [ensemble de notes et de documents sur le peintre; recueillis et transcrits par Léon Leenhoff],” 1900–10, Bibliothèque nationale de France, département Estampes et photographie, RESERVE 8-YB3-2401, p. 82, as Lilas.
Théodore Duret, Histoire d’Édouard Manet et de son œuvre (Paris: H. Floury, 1902), 276, as Fleurs.
Théodore Guédy, Manuel pratique du Collectionneur de Tableaux: Comprenant les principales Ventes des XVIIIe, XIXe siècles jusqu’à nos jours, des œuvres des Peintres de toutes les écoles (Paris, [1906]), 97, as Fleurs.
Théodore Duret, Histoire d’Édouard Manet et de Son œuvre, Avec un Catalogue des Peintures et des Pastels , new ed. (Paris: Bernheim-Jeune, 1919), no. 320, pp. 283, as Fleurs.
Étienne Moreau-Nélaton, Manet raconté par lui-même, vol. 2 (Paris: Henri Laurens, 1926), 93, 143, (repro.), as Lilas.
A[dolphe] Tabarant, Manet: Histoire catalographique (Paris: Éditions Montaigne, 1931), no. 402, pp. 433, 587, as Lilas (Grand vase à pied carré).
Paul Jamot and Georges Wildenstein, Manet, vol. 1 (Paris: Beaux-Arts, 1932), no. 511, p. 181, as Lilas dans un Vase de Cristal.
Manet, 1832–1883 , exh. cat. (Paris: Édition des Musées Nationaux, 1932), 66, (repro.), as Lilas dans un Vase de Cristal.
Honderd jaar Fransche kunst tentoonstelling / Un siècle de peinture française , exh. cat. (Amsterdam: Stedelijk Museum, 1938), 96, as Lilas dans une vase de cristal.
La Pintura Francesa de David a nuestros días: Oleos, Dibujos, y Acuarelas , exh. cat. (Montevideo, Uruguay: Salón Nacional de Bellas Artes, 1939), 40, (repro.), as Lilas en un Vaso de Cristal.
A[dolphe] Tabarant, Manet (Paris: Éditions Albert Skira, 1939), unpaginated, (repro.), as Lilas Dans un Vase de Cristal.
The Painting of France since the French Revolution , exh. cat. (San Francisco: Recorder, 1940), 25–26, 78, (repro.), as Lilacs in a Crystal Vase.
French Painting from David to Toulouse-Lautrec: Loans from French and American Museums and Collections , exh. cat. (New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1941), 27, as Lilacs in a Crystal Vase.
Masterpieces of French Art , exh. cat. (Chicago: Art Institute of Chicago, 1941), 30, as Lilacs in a Crystal Vase.
A[dolphe] Tabarant, Manet et ses œuvres (Paris: Gallimard, 1947), 462, 545, 616, (repro.), as Lilas blanc.
Natures mortes françaises du XVIIe siècle à nos jours , exh. cat. (Paris: Galerie Charpentier, 1951), unpaginated, as Les lilas.
Vier eeuwen stilleven in Frankrijk , exh. cat. (Rotterdam, The Netherlands: Museum Boymans, 1954), 78, (repro.), as Seringen in een kristallen vaas and Lilas dans une vase de cristal.
Peinture et impressionnisme de Géricault à Monet , exh. cat. (Paris: Galerie Alfred Daber, 1956), unpaginated, (repro.), as Lilas dans un vase de cristal.
Fem Sekler Fransk Konst: Miniatyrer, Målningar, Teckningar, 1400–1900 , vol. 1, exh. cat. (Stockholm: Nationalmuseum, 1958), 111–12, 202, as Kristallvas med Syrener / Lilas dans un vase de cristal.
Sandra Orienti, The Complete Paintings of Manet, 1st ed. (London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson, 1967), no. 411E, pp. 120–21, (repro.).
John Rewald, “Chocquet and Cézanne,” Gazette des beaux-arts 74, nos. 1206–07 (July-August 1969): 64, 75, 79, 93n29.
Sandra Orienti, The Complete Paintings of Manet, 2nd ed. (London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson, 1970), no. 411E, pp. 120–21, (repro.).
Denis Rouart and Daniel Wildenstein, Edouard Manet: Catalogue raisonné, vol. 1, Peintures (Lausanne: Bibliothèque des Arts, 1975), no. 418, p. 302, (repro.), as Lilas dans un Vase de Cristal.
Robert Gordon and Andrew Forge, The Last Flowers of Manet, trans. Richard Howard (New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1986), 13, 38–39, (repro.), as Lilas Blancs dans un Vase de Cristal (White Lilacs in a Crystal Vase) .
Bobbie Leigh, “Magnificent Obsession,” Art and Antiques 29, no. 6 (June 2006): 65, as White Lilacs in a Crystal Vase.
Richard R. Brettell and Joachim Pissarro, Manet to Matisse: Impressionist Masters from the Marion and Henry Bloch Collection , exh. cat. (Kansas City, MO: Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, 2007), 10, 15, 30, 34–37, 155, (repro.), as White Lilacs in a Crystal Vase (Lilas blancs dans un vase de cristal) .
“Inaugural Exhibitions Celebrate Kansas City,” Member Magazine (The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art) (Fall 2006): 3.
Alice Thorson, “First Public Exhibition: Marion and Henry Bloch’s Art Collection,” Kansas City Star (June 3, 2007): E4.
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Manet, inventeur du Moderne , exh. cat. (Paris: Éditions Gallimard, 2011), 67, 69n72.
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.
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Mariantonia Reinhard-Felice, Victor Chocquet: Ami et collectionneur des impressionnistes: Renoir, Cézanne, Monet, Manet , exh. cat. (Munich: Hirmer Verlag, 2015), 226 (repro.), as Lilas blancs dans un vase de cristal.
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http://jewishbusinessnews.com/2017/02/26/henry-bloch-masterpieces-collection/ .
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Manet and Modern Beauty , exh. cat. (Chicago: Art Institute of Chicago, 2019), 143, 268, 320, (repro.), as White Lilacs in a Crystal Vase.
Mary Frances Ivey, “Edouard Manet, White Lilacs in a Crystal Vase, ca. 1882,” catalogue entry, and Diana M. Jaskierny, “Edouard Manet, White Lilacs in a Crystal Vase, ca. 1882,” technical entry in French Paintings and Pastels, 1600–1945: The Collections of The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Aimee Marcereau DeGalan, ed., (Kansas City: The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, 2021), https://doi.org/10.37764/78973.5.526.4033.
