Provenance

Dr. and Mrs. David M. Levy

Levy, David M. and Adele R.

Explore selected works

A plate of oysters, a halved lemon, an oyster fork and shells, and a dish of salt are arranged on a wooden tabletop in front of a gray wall in this horizontal still life painting. The front edge of the table seems close to us, and the objects span the width of this composition. Six oysters are crowded on the oval plate, which is white and edged with royal blue. The narrow tines of the oyster fork are angled toward the plate as the handle, which is shaped like the blade of a butter knife, angles to our right and seems to jut into our space. The two empty shells are next to the knife in front of the lemon, which has been cut in half through its girth. One cut edge faces our left and the other half rests with its cut edge down on the table. The bowl with salt mounded within is about the same size as the lemon and has a border of brown at the top and near the foot. The entire painting is loosely painted with visible brushstrokes, and some vague lines on the side of the bowl suggest a Japanese or Chinese character.
Edouard Manet, Oysters, 1862, oil on canvas, Gift of the Adele R. Levy Fund, Inc., 1962.3.1

Oysters

Edouard Manet · 1862 · oil on canvas ·  Accession ID  1962.3.1

Shown from the hips up, a pale-skinned young woman wearing a white dress sits smiling gently at us in this vertical portrait painting. Blended strokes of pearl white, cool green, and muted blue create an overall soft, almost blurred look. The woman’s body is angled to our left, but she turns her face to look at us with brown eyes under dark, curved brows. She has a heart-shaped face with rosy cheeks, a thin, short nose, and full, pink lips, which are closed in a smile. Her honey-blond hair is swept up and back, but a few tendrils curl on her forehead and the nape of her neck. The neckline of her sleeveless white dress is cut low. The bodice fits tightly to a narrow waist, and a sprig of flowers is suggested by a few strokes of fern green and bright white at the center of the chest. A pale blue collar or ruffled band encircles her neck like a choker. Her hands rest together in her lap, and a white cloth loops over her forearms. The background is painted with loose strokes of powder blue and sage green against the off-white of the canvas, which is visible in some areas, especially along the left edge. The artist signed the painting near the woman’s elbow to our left, “Renoir.”
Auguste Renoir, Madame Henriot, c. 1876, oil on canvas, Gift of the Adele R. Levy Fund, Inc., 1961.3.1

Madame Henriot

Auguste Renoir · c. 1876 · oil on canvas ·  Accession ID  1961.3.1

Odilon Redon, Pansies, c. 1905, pastel on brown paper, Rosenwald Collection, Gift of the Adele R. Levy Fund, Inc., 1961.14.1

Pansies

Odilon Redon · c. 1905 · pastel on brown paper ·  Accession ID  1961.14.1