Édouard ManetFrench, 1832–1883The Spanish Singer
May one see it?
Yes, receiving visitors
The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Room810New York, United States
On public display.
- Checked
- 4 hours ago
- In this state since
- Sep 26, 2026
- Source
- The museum's own collection data
About the painting
The Spanish Singer (Le Chanteur espagnol), also known as Guitarrero, is an 1860 oil painting on canvas by the French painter Édouard Manet, conserved since 1949 at the Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York.
Composed in Manet's studio, it employed a model and props which were later used for at least one other painting. This work, both realistic and exotic in its depiction of its subject, exhibits the influence of Spanish art, especially that of Diego Velázquez, on Manet's style. Manet, due to this painting, was accepted for the first time at the Salon of Paris in 1861, where he also exhibited a portrait of his parents.
Read on
The Spanish Singer was well received by critics. It was appreciated by French writer Charles Baudelaire, and by French journalist and literary critic Theophile Gautier, who praised the painting for its "very true color" and "vigorous brush". Manet consequently became the leader of the avant-garde movement and inspired a group of young artists, including Henri Fantin-Latour and Carolus-Duran, who decided to visit Manet's studio.
Particulars
- Accession number
- 49.58.2
What it shows
Sources
- The Metropolitan Museum of Art: the museum's own open data · fetched 4 days ago
- Image: The Metropolitan Museum of Art — Open Access (CC0)
Meanwhile, in the life of Édouard Manet
The whole life1856–1858
Baudelaire and the studio on Rue Lavoisier
In 1856–1858 Manet became known as a promising artist and was invited to various salons, forming a particularly warm friendship with the poet Charles Baudelaire. Together with Count Albert de Balleroy he rented premises on Rue Lavoisier as a studio, and went to the Louvre every day to copy famous paintings.
1859
“The Absinthe Drinker” rejected; a final break with Couture
In 1859 Manet decided that his education was complete and submitted “The Absinthe Drinker” to the Salon; Couture reacted negatively and Manet finally broke with his teacher. The Salon jury rejected the painting: only Delacroix voted for it, while Couture voted against.
1861
His first participation in the Salon
In 1861 the Salon accepted two canvases by Manet: “Portrait of Monsieur and Madame Manet” and “The Spanish Singer”. Critics received the portrait coldly, while “The Spanish Singer” was admired by Théophile Gautier and, because of its popularity, hung in a more conspicuous place; the work intrigued young artists and brought new business to his studio.
1862
“Music in the Tuileries”: the fury of the public
In 1862 Manet exhibited “Music in the Tuileries” (probably painted in 1860), where the strollers include the poet Baudelaire, the musician Offenbach and the artist himself. It mostly provoked fury: the thick brushstrokes looked crude and unfinished, several visitors threatened to destroy the canvas; Delacroix defended it, and the controversy made Manet a well-known name in Paris.
c. 1862
Victorine Meurent: model and lover
Victorine-Louise Meurent, a young provincial eager to escape poverty, posed for “The Street Singer”; soon the painter and his model were bound not only by creative but by intimate ties. Rumours spread across Paris, but Suzanne either learned nothing or did not let on.
1862
His father dies; living on his inheritance
Manet's father, Auguste, died in 1862. Édouard's paintings still failed to sell, and he continued living off his inheritance.
