Édouard Manet - The Luncheon on the Grass

Title: The Luncheon on the Grass (Le déjeuner sur l'herbe)
Artist: Édouard Manet (1832-1883)
Date: 1863
Medium: Oil on canvas
Dimensions: 208 x 265 cm
Location: Musée d'Orsay, Paris, France

"The Luncheon on the Grass" is a seminal work by Édouard Manet, painted in 1863. It caused a scandal when it was first exhibited at the Salon des Refusés in Paris due to its unconventional treatment of the female nude.

The painting depicts a scene in which two fully clothed men are having a picnic with a nude woman in a lush, rural setting. The woman's unabashed nudity and her direct gaze challenge the viewer's expectations and traditional notions of propriety. The men, by contrast, appear nonchalant, as if her nudity is of no consequence.

The composition of the painting is deliberately disorienting. The figures are arranged in a shallow, flattened space, with no clear indication of depth or perspective. The woman's bold presence dominates the composition thanks to Manet's handling of light and color, drawing attention to her body and its confrontational stance.

Interpretations of "Le Déjeuner sur l'herbe" vary, with some scholars suggesting that it is a commentary on the hypocrisy of bourgeois morality, a critique of the objectification of women in art, or yet a celebration of individual freedom, with the nude woman asserting her agency in a male-dominated world.