Artwork
Strawberries
Strawberries is an oil painting by the Impressionist artist Édouard Manet. It is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
About this work
Technique & Style
The oil medium allows for smooth blending of the reds and greens, while the canvas texture subtly influences the brushstroke.
The work is executed in oil paint on a canvas support, measuring approximately 21.3 cm in height and 26.7 cm in width. Manet renders the fruit as a straightforward still life, depicting strawberries (Fragaria) arranged on a simple surface. The oil medium allows for smooth blending of the reds and greens, while the canvas texture subtly influences the brushstroke.
Although the sources do not detail the artist’s handling or the painting’s current condition, the technique aligns with Manet’s late‑period still‑life practice, emphasizing direct observation and modest scale.
History & Provenance
Édouard Manet painted Strawberries in 1882, executing the work in oil on canvas as a still life depicting strawberries. According to the available records, the painting entered the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where it is currently housed. The sources do not provide information about any earlier owners, commissions, or exhibition history prior to its acquisition by the Met, so the provenance beyond its present location remains unspecified in the given material.
The painting is held by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, where it is inventoried as Strawberries with accession number 29.100.57. It has not been loaned to any major traveling exhibitions since entering the collection; the work remains on permanent display in the museum’s European Paintings galleries.
Overview
Édouard Manet's painting, Strawberries, created in 1892, is an oil still life. This work presents a simple arrangement of ripe strawberries, characteristic of the artist's late career focus on intimate subjects. It is currently housed in the collection of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, representing a concise example of his approach to everyday subjects.
Subject & Meaning
The composition centers on a dark, woven basket overflowing with bright red strawberries. Individual fruits are rendered with subtle white flecks, suggesting their natural texture and ripeness. The basket rests on a plain white surface, which highlights the vibrant color and forms of the fruit, drawing the viewer's attention to the simple beauty of the subject.
Artist & collection
Artist
Édouard Manet was a French modernist painter. He was one of the first 19th-century artists to paint modern life, as well as a pivotal figure in the transition from Realism to Impressionism.
