In 1984 when Juliet Wilson Bareau published her research on this small Manet, which had remained in the sitter’s family, and had not been included in either catalogue raisonné, and had only been seen in public once, she did note that it was the artist’s first plein air painting, but she did not note that it was the artist’s first portrait of a dog.
By cross-referencing a letter from the human sitter, Ambroise Adam, a relative of Manet’s uncle, whose son was a close friend of the then 29-yo artist, Wilson Bareau determined the painting was made in the late afternoon of Friday, July 19, 1861: « Édouard m’a fait asseoir pour un portrait avec Plydie sur mes genoux. » “Édouard had me sit for a portrait with Plydie on my lap.”
Weirdly, Christie’s, which is selling the painting next week in Paris, published an image of the letter, and the quote in the lot essay AND the magazine is not quite what the letter says: «pour gagner le diner, Édouard m’as fais poser avec Plydie sur les genoux pour un portrait.» “To earn dinner, Édouard had me pose with Plydie on my lap for a portrait.”
It’s not entirely clear that Manet’s portrait subject was not, in fact, Plydie. And just look at it. It’s so sparely executed, you can almost count the number of brushstrokes. And just look at that little face.
I was ready to call this Manet’s first dog painting, until I checked the CR. There’s a painting with a grab bag of Rubens elements in it, including a dog, called la Pêche, (Fishing), that’s dated 1861. But the Met says it’s related to Manet’s wedding, and so from 1862-3.
And there’s a painting of a kid with a basket and a dog called, le Gamin, Enfant au Chien, or le Gamin au Chien, which the CR says is from 1861. But the CR also says it depicts Alexandre, a 15-yo model who worked for Manet, and who hanged himself in Manet’s studio. It does not say that happened in 1859. And the CR also says Alexandre posed for an 1858 painting, Gamin avec Cerises (Boy with Cherries), and it does not note they look nothing alike. And then Alexandre is also supposed to have been the model for this 1862-64 etching & aquatint of a boy with a dog. Put me down as unpersuaded.
And put Plydie down as the first dog whose portrait Manet painted. Given that it’ll be on view during Art Basel Paris, I am unconvinced of the idea a facsimile object is useful or necessary.
24 Oct 2025, Lot 125: Édouard Manet, Ambroise Adam dans le jardin à Pressagny, 1861, est EUR 100-150,000 [update: sold for EUR 895,340 wow] [christies]
Previously, related: Manet Paints Dog