Description
Nana is a painting by Édouard Manet from 1877: a young woman in a white chemise, pale blue corset and white stockings stands before a mirror with a powder puff and a lipstick, turning to look straight at us, while a gentleman in evening dress and top hat sits on a red sofa at the right edge. The original, oil on canvas, is 154 cm high and 115 cm wide and belongs to the Hamburger Kunsthalle. Our painter paints it for you by hand in oil on canvas, in 8 upright sizes from 30 x 40 to 105 x 145 cm. Before we pack Nana, we send you a photograph of her.
| Title: | Nana |
| Other titles: | Nana (French title) · Nanà (Italian title) |
| Painter: | Édouard Manet (1832–1883) |
| Year painted: | 1877 |
| Original size: | 154 cm x 115 cm (height x width) |
| Original technique: | Oil on canvas |
| Painting style: | Realism and Impressionism |
| Located at: | Hamburger Kunsthalle, Hamburg, Germany |
| Our reproduction: | Hand-painted in oil on canvas, 8 sizes or made to measure |
Nana – Édouard Manet
What does Nana show?
At the centre stands a young woman with golden brown hair, piled high and held by a slim white band. She wears a lace-edged white chemise, a light blue corset, white stockings and black high-heeled shoes. Her body faces the mirror, but she turns her head calmly over her shoulder towards us.
Her lower hand holds a large white powder puff; the other brings the lipstick to her lips. On the left a tall oval mirror stands on a slender metal stand with two candles, with a small table, a green flowerpot and a chair draped in pale blue behind it.
Behind her is a sofa with a carved gilt frame and dark red upholstery, holding a white cloth and a green cushion. At the right edge sits a moustached gentleman in tailcoat and top hat, holding a cane; the edge of the canvas cuts him in half. The wall is decorated with water, a shore and a large crane beneath flowering branches. At the lower left are Manet’s name and the number 77.
Who is Nana, and what does the scene mean?
The scene is a boudoir, the private room where a lady dressed and received visitors. English Wikipedia notes that the title and many details point to a high-class courtesan and her visitor.
In the later 19th century Nana was a common assumed name among such women, and in colloquial French nana still means a frivolous woman, or simply a woman.
The model was Henriette Hauser, a well-known Parisian courtesan of the day. Manet shows her neither as a victim nor as a warning: she stands upright and self-assured, her gaze on the viewer, while the man is pushed to the margin.
Why did the painting cause a scandal?
In 1877 Manet submitted it to the Paris Salon, and the jury turned it down as contemptuous of the morality of the day. French society, Wikipedia says, was not ready for so frank a depiction of prostitution.
Manet did not give up. He showed it in a shop window on the Boulevard des Capucines, and because his name was well known, crowds gathered at the glass.
One of his defenders was Émile Zola, who in 1880 published a novel of the same title, the ninth volume of the Rougon-Macquart series. There is no clear evidence that either man inspired the other, since the book appeared three years later; Manet probably drew on Zola’s earlier novel L’Assommoir, where Nana first appears.
The full story is told in a Wikipedia article on Manet’s Nana, written in English.
Where is the original, and how large is it?
The original belongs to the Hamburger Kunsthalle, inventory number HK-2376. It is oil on canvas, 154 cm high and 115 cm wide.
Born in Paris in 1832 to a wealthy family, Manet trained under Thomas Couture and copied Velázquez and Titian in the Louvre; he was among the first painters of modern life.
He was a friend of the Impressionists but never exhibited with them, preferring the official Salon, which refused him Nana. Six years after painting her, he died in Paris after a long illness.
Nana or another Manet?
Nana is a canvas painting for lovers of 19th-century Paris, and its upright format suits a narrow wall.
To see how Manet had already shaken Paris, look at Olympia of 1863, shown at the Salon of 1865, or Le Déjeuner sur l’herbe, which hung in the Salon des Refusés. The mirror and the young woman at the centre return in A Bar at the Folies-Bergère, his last major work, and elegant Parisians fill The Balcony of 1868, where the painter Berthe Morisot sits too.
Nana sits beside the other famous Manet paintings we make to order on our Édouard Manet page.
How do we hand-paint Nana on canvas?
Manet painted Nana as a large oil on canvas. Ours is an oil painting reproduction made by hand: the painter works to order in oil on canvas, in the size you choose, building it up layer by layer.
He first sets out the figure, the mirror, the sofa and the cropped gentleman, so the proportions stay as Manet had them. Then come the blue-green wall, the reds and golds of the sofa and the dark mass of the tailcoat.
The white fabric needs the most care. Manet painted the chemise, stockings and cloth in quick, broad strokes where white mixes with grey, blue and pink, and our painter follows them with the brush so the fabric lives on your wall too.
Which size suits which wall?
In short: 30 x 40 or 33 x 46 cm for a shelf, a dressing room or beside the bed, 45 x 60 and 51 x 67 cm for a hallway or bedroom, 66 x 87 and 73 x 100 cm above a chest of drawers or a bed, and 91 x 127 or 105 x 145 cm for the living room or a tall wall.
We paint Nana in 8 upright sizes (width x height): 30 x 40, 33 x 46, 45 x 60, 51 x 67, 66 x 87, 73 x 100, 91 x 127 and 105 x 145 cm. The original measures 115 x 154 cm (width x height), so all our sizes are somewhat smaller. The largest, 105 x 145 cm, is only about 10 cm narrower and 9 cm shorter, so Nana stands almost as tall on it as she does in Hamburg. We do not paint it larger, because the photograph we work from gives no further detail.
As a painting for the living room it works best at 91 x 127 or 105 x 145 cm, hung with Nana’s face at about eye level.
Can I have other proportions or a frame?
Yes. If you need a different ratio, we adapt the painting so that Nana, the mirror and the gentleman stay whole, widening or narrowing only the room, up to 105 x 145 cm. Write to us with the measurements you need and we will work out a price and a date for your Nana.
Nana travels to you rolled, stretched on a stretcher bar or framed. Our workshop in Slovenia stretches and frames every painting, this one included, and packs it carefully. You choose the moulding in our 3D app, which is meant for that alone; seeing Nana on your own wall is a separate service.
When will you receive the painting?
Once you confirm the order, the painter starts, and Nana is ready to ship within 15 to 45 working days. Before she leaves, we send you a photograph of the finished Nana, and if you would like a change, we make it.
We ship within Slovenia and to every other EU country with no customs duties, and every purchase is covered by our returns policy.
For a lover of Paris or fashion who has yet to pick a wall, a wall art voucher leaves the size to them.
Frequently asked questions
Where can I see the original Nana?
At the Hamburger Kunsthalle in Hamburg, where it carries inventory number HK-2376.
Who is the woman in the painting?
The model was Henriette Hauser, a well-known Parisian courtesan; Nana was then a common assumed name among such women.
Is it a print?
No. You receive a hand-painted copy, made by our painter with brushes in oil on canvas.
How big is the original?
It measures 154 x 115 cm (height x width); our largest size, 105 x 145 cm (width x height), is a little smaller.
Can I order Nana in a different aspect ratio?
Yes. Tell us the width and height you want, up to 105 x 145 cm, and we will send an offer with a price and a date.
How long does it take to make?
From 15 to 45 working days; before dispatch you see your finished Nana in a photograph.
Is Nana right for a bedroom or a living area?
Yes. The boudoir scene suits a bedroom or dressing room, and in the larger sizes a living area as well.
Why did the Salon refuse the painting?
The jury found it contemptuous of the morality of the time, because it openly shows a courtesan and her visitor.
- Subject: a young woman in a white chemise and blue corset with a powder puff before a mirror, a gentleman in a top hat at the edge.
- Original: oil on canvas, 1877, 154 x 115 cm, Hamburger Kunsthalle.
- Ours: an Édouard Manet reproduction painted by hand in oil on canvas, 8 upright sizes from 30 x 40 to 105 x 145 cm.
- Worth knowing: the Salon refused it in 1877, and Manet then showed it in a shop window on the Boulevard des Capucines.
