Édouard Manet’s painting The Railway exemplifies some of the best techniques that this artist developed during his lifetime. For instance, one should mention that Monet applies paint in both thick and thin layers. This method enables the author to create different shades of blue and white. This approach was later emulated by many other artists.
Apart from that, Manet uses the compositional approach which prompts the viewers to think about the behavior of the characters or their motives. For instance, the viewers do not know what the girl depicted by the author looks at and why she is so excited. Therefore, this painting presents the viewers with many thought-provoking questions. For instance, one may ask why the author tried to portray at a particular moment.
In addition to that, it should be mentioned that this painting was created during the period when Paris was significantly renovated. At that time, many old quarters of this city were razed to the ground (Pollitt, 2010). To a great extent, Manet’s painting reflects the way in which this city was transformed. This is why this painting is of great interest to many art historians. These are some of the aspects that should be singled out.
It should be noted that the artist depicts two figures. At first, one should speak about a middle-aged woman, clothed in a blue dress; she holds a puppy in her hands. This person appears to be rather melancholy, and one cannot tell exactly how she looks in this way. In turn, a little girl, wearing a white dress is evidently captivated or astonished by something.
Probably, she looks at the moving train; at that time, such a sight could indeed produce a profound impression on a child. Nevertheless, the audience cannot tell for sure. Additionally, one cannot tell how these characters are related to one another. Overall, this ambiguity is one of the reasons this painting attracts so much attention of the viewers who want to know about the background of the main characters (Berend, 2003, p. 38).
Furthermore, the painting can give the audience a glimpse of Paris. For instance, the viewers can learn how the railway station Gare Saint-Lazare looked like at the time when the urban landscape of Paris was transformed (Pollitt, 2010). This is another reason why this picture is worth attention.
This painting has been interpreted from different perspectives. For instance, many critics can believe that the artist attempted to show an individual within the changing urban landscape of Paris in the second half of the nineteenth century (Berend, 2003, p. 38). Moreover, the woman depicted by the artist could represent the middle classes of the French society. This is another perspective that should be taken into account.
It should be mentioned that at the time when this painting was created, Manet was criticized by many people for the lack of clarity and compositional unity in this picture. Nevertheless, this work of art was later recognized as one of Manet’s masterpieces (Locke, 2003, p. 100). The readers may interpret this artwork from different perspectives, but in any case; it cannot leave a person indifferent. These are the elements that can be identified.
Reference List
Berend, I. (2003). History Derailed: Central and Eastern Europe in the Long Nineteenth Century. San Diago, Cal: University of California Press.
Locke, N. (2003). Manet and the Family Romance. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Pollitt, B. (2010). Édouard Manet’s The Railway. Web.