This is a delightful study, still in the old style. The figure of
the boy stands out against a dark background, but a close
examination of the painting of the face and hands shows those
generous, luminous flesh tints which were to reappear later in the
Fifer. Though classical in tendency, Manet's treatment here
displays the glowing blond texture that he gave to flesh in all
his later work and that finally characterized his painting in
general.
The model for this picture inspired Baudelaire's prose
poem "La Corde" in Spleen de Paris, which first appeared in
VArtiste. The boy, whose name was Alexandre, was fifteen. Manet
had engaged him to clean his brushes and palette and occasionally
to pose for him. Alexandre was subject to fits of depression. One
evening, Manet called him in vain. He eventually found him - he
had hanged himself in a corner of the studio in the rue Lavoisier
that Manet shared with Albert de Balleroy. Distressed by this
suicide, Manet went in search of another studio and found one at
the Place Clichy. As he went in however, his eye was caught by an
enormous nail protruding in sinister fashion from the plaster.
"Who hanged himself here?" he asked jokingly. "How did you know?"
exclaimed the concierge in amazement. Manet turned on his heel and
fled without inquiring further.
This boy, who also posed for Boy with a Dog, is
immortalized by the bright, youthful smile Manet has given him.
The hand clutching the cherries displays that characteristic
treatment, bold and darkly outlined in places, which was to be
found thereafter in all the hands painted by Manet.
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