Asparagus
1880
A single, humble stalk of asparagus lies horizontally across a pale, textured canvas, rendered with loose, almost sketchy brushstrokes that capture its essence rather than photographic detail. Édouard Manet painted this minimalist masterpiece in 1880 as a cheeky thank-you note to a wealthy collector who had generously overpaid for a bunch of his asparagus. Manet reportedly sent this single spear back to him with a note saying, 'There was one missing from your bunch,' turning a simple vegetable into a legendary inside joke of the Impressionist world.
- Technique
- Oil on canvas
Location: Musée d'Orsay, Paris
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