Key points
- Manet's split painting is reunited in London for the first time in 70 years.
- The National Gallery hosts the exhibition, showcasing reunited painting.
- The event highlights the development of modern French painting from the 1860s to the early 20th century.
Édouard Manet - left: At the café - right: Café-concert corner
The National Gallery in London opens its doors for a unique exhibition that brings together, for the first time in over a century, the two iconic halves of a masterpiece by Édouard Manet. This rare encounter offers art lovers a unique opportunity to contemplate together “At the Café” and “Corner of a Café-Concert”, two parts of the same painting, once separated after the artist’s death.
A landmark event in the art world
In a special exhibition, the National Gallery and the Courtauld Gallery are teaming up to present over 150 works from over 70 collections, providing an in-depth overview of Manet’s influence on modern art. The artist’s signature café-concert scene is highlighted alongside other major pieces that illustrate his vision and boldness in the world of cabaret and entertainment.
The story of a fragmented painting
In Manet’s time, it was not uncommon for art dealers to cut up large-scale works to maximize their sales. Thus, the painting “At the Café” was split into two distinct parts. The left part, titled “Corner of a Café-Concert,” captures a group of spectators seated at a table, captivated by the performance of a singer on stage. Acquired by the National Gallery in London in 1924, this section already testifies to Manet’s importance in the European artistic landscape.
The right-hand side, titled “At the Café,” depicts an elegant man in a top hat, with a woman seated beside him. This second half was purchased in 1953 by the Swiss collector Oskar Reinhart and is normally part of the collection exhibited at his museum in Winterthur, northern Switzerland. However, in a unique move, “At the Café” has traveled to London as part of the exhibition “From Goya to Impressionism: Masterpieces from the Oskar Reinhart Collection” at the Courtauld Gallery, where it will remain until May 26.
A historic and temporary meeting
The unprecedented proximity of these two works is all the more remarkable given that the National Gallery, located in Trafalgar Square, and the Courtauld Gallery, housed in Somerset House, are at opposite ends of the Strand in London. After the exhibition “From Goya to Impressionism” closes in May, the two halves will be temporarily reunited at the National Gallery, until 15 December 2025. This reunion will allow visitors to reconstruct, even in an imaginary way, the original composition imagined by Manet, despite the separation that has marked the history of this painting.
An overview of Manet's influence on modern art
By bringing together these two works, the exhibition not only offers a look back at the unique history of these two paintings, but also an opportunity to appreciate the full richness and influence of Manet on the development of modern art. The café-concert scene, a recurring theme in the painter's work, is explored here from a new angle, in dialogue with more than 150 other works from prestigious collections. Visitors will thus be able to better understand how Manet was able, through his audacity and sensitivity, to transform a simple scene from everyday life into a truly timeless work of art.
Jean Dubreil