1870, Edouard Manet, In the Garden -- Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York) (special exhibition)
From the museum label: Manet's attention to the natural effects of light and shadow at play in this work may indicate that it was painted en plein air. The lively brushwork, especially in the background, and the subject matter both suggest that he was likely looking at the work of younger painters, such as Monet and Renoir, while the abrupt cropping of the composition takes cues from Degas. Although the identities of the sitters have been disputed, they were probably the Italian artist Giuseppe De Nittis, a mutual friend of Manet and Degas, and his wife and child, with whom Manet stayed during the summer of 1870.
Link to other Manet paintings
1870, Edouard Manet, In the Garden -- Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York) (special exhibition)
From the museum label: Manet's attention to the natural effects of light and shadow at play in this work may indicate that it was painted en plein air. The lively brushwork, especially in the background, and the subject matter both suggest that he was likely looking at the work of younger painters, such as Monet and Renoir, while the abrupt cropping of the composition takes cues from Degas. Although the identities of the sitters have been disputed, they were probably the Italian artist Giuseppe De Nittis, a mutual friend of Manet and Degas, and his wife and child, with whom Manet stayed during the summer of 1870.
Link to other Manet paintings