Manet

I found that I actually became very attached to Suzanne Manet reading this story, more so than I was with the charter in the previous Van Gogh based story. I understand her to be a very sincere and thoughtful woman. She is obviously mourning the death of her recently deceased husband, but this does not completely incapacitate her. As a part of her grieving process she gets closure between herself and one of the women her husband had an affair with. I was surprised by how satisfying the moment was for me when Suzanne returned from Victorine’s flat and started a fire. Not only had she come to the conclusion that she was Eduard’s one true love, being with him to the end, but she came to appreciate the little things Eduard did in his lifetime. My personal favorite moment was when she noticed the way her feet angled outward in the same way that her husband had painted them. As opposed to the way she disapproved of their portrayal in the painting at the beginning of the story, she very much enjoyed them this time.

Having background information on the life and work of Eduard Manet I believe that I enjoyed this story much more than that of Van Gogh. From a historical perspective it is easy to appreciate all the idiosyncrasies of Manet’s life and work imbedded in the text. The two passages that I much enjoyed show Suzanne’s process of what I wouldn’t quite call revenge, but a stage of confrontation to receive closure in her grieving process. When Isabelle, another one of Eduard’s lovers, approaches Suzanne in the grievance line Suzanne shows her the letter she has addressed to her from Eduard. After she reads it Suzanne snatches it away and turns her back on a mourning and resentful Isabelle. The other passage that I’m sure many people chose is Suzanne’s confrontation with Victorine. Both of these instances show that Suzanne was emotionally closer to Eduard and his true love. This shows something about Suzanne’s character, at first she wasn’t confident about her role in Eduard’s life following his death, but she becomes more confident in their love after she stands up for herself.

I think that it is a combination of events that affect and shape our lives. I don’t know if I am in an appropriate position to make a philosophical judgment of freewill with the limited information I have been given in this story. I get the sense from the author that Suzanne is still going to do something noteworthy in her life besides simply being the wife of a famous painter. I’m curious as to if that prediction will prove true.

Though I still think the writing and dialogue are a bit odd as in the Van Gogh piece, I enjoyed this piece quite a lot. I become very attached to the character of Suzanne and felt a great deal of contentment at the end of the story when she reached a sense of resolve. I think because of the background information I had on the artist going into this piece it was much easier to become a fan of the story. This type of piece, in my mind, would be very hard to understand for someone without any knowledge of the artist's biography in mind and very much appreciated by a fan of the artist.

Annotated Bibliography - Bindo Altoviti

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"Bindo Altoviti." National Gallery of Art. 2008. 03 Feb. 2009 .

This is an article solely dedicated portrait of Bindo Altoviti painted by Rafael in 1515. What I learned from it holds true to many of the observations I made in my initial analysis (awesome). Altoviti is a wealthy young banker no older than twenty five. He has never worked a day of physical labor in his life and his wealth has afforded him clean hair and elegant clothing. The gaze and posture of the subject are typical of Renaissance art. Falling in love was done through the eyes and as the author of this piece suggested, could be gazing at his with whom he married in 1511. It seems that I have mistaken a gaze of lust and seductiveness with a gaze of sleepiness. In my interpretation I thought he looked tired or like he was longing for something he couldn't have. Maybe I mistake lust with exhaustion all the time, which would explain my women problems. But that is another story.

"RAFFAELLO." Web Gallery of Art, image collection, virtual museum, searchable database of European fine art. 03 Feb. 2009 .

This source is a biography of Rafael’s career. His first know paintings are from 1500 which means that my portrait of Bindo Altoviti would be at least fifteen years into Rafael’s career and be painted in his mature style. While this work was commissioned Rafael was in Rome and at the same time painting works of art for the Vatican. This source is helpful because it provides me with a bit of insight into one of the questions that I added to the question sheet. Which is “why did the painter paint this?” I now know that Rafael painted this because of money. Rafael was commissioned for this portrait because of his fame as an artist, and Bindo Altoviti as a wealthy man must have wanted nothing but the best for his portrait. As well, my guess is that Rafael painted this portrait pretty well in line with the style of the times and his previous work to appease his customer. The gaze that Altoviti has I learned is typical of that of portraits of the times.

"Raphael, Cellini, and a Renaissance Banker. The Patronage of Bindo Altoviti * Raphael and the Beautiful Banker. The Story of the Bindo Altoviti Portrait * Gondola Days: Isabella Stewart Gardner and the Palazzo Barbaro Circle -- Henry 18 (1): 89 -- Journal of the History of Collections." Oxford Journals. 2006. Oxford University Press. 02 Feb. 2009 .

This article is actually three book reviews published in an Oxford University Journal about three newly published books on Rafael’s portrait of Bindo Altoviti. As it turns out, the portrait has a very rich history and has recently as 2006 has been subject to debate in scholarly circles. I found it interesting that in WWII the portrait was stolen from its owner and swapped with a mediocre fake. The scholarly debate occurring is in relation to Altoviti’s age at the painting of the portrait. Some believe that it was painted around 1518 and others think it coincides with his wedding in 1511. Though this review doesn’t delve into the arguments used in the books, it does mention that scholars have investigated Altoviti’s banking and financial records to see if he could even afford the painting in 1511 or 1518. I think it would be interesting to read up on this if I have time. What I took away from this article is that Rafael’s paintings are still relevant today not only in the art community but in the scholarly community.