Description
Portrait of Émile Zola is a work by Édouard Manet from 1868: the bearded writer Émile Zola sits at his desk in a dark jacket with an open book in his hands, while on the wall behind him hang a small reproduction of Olympia, a Japanese print of a wrestler and an engraving after Velázquez. The original is oil on canvas, 146.5 cm high and 114 cm wide, and belongs to the Musée d’Orsay in Paris. Our painter paints it for you by hand in oil on canvas, in 8 portrait sizes from 30 x 40 to 99 x 125 cm, or made to measure. Before it leaves us, we send you a photograph of the finished painting.
| Title: | Portrait of Émile Zola |
| Other titles: | Portrait d’Émile Zola (French title) |
| Painter: | Édouard Manet (1832–1883) |
| Year painted: | 1868 |
| Original size: | 146.5 cm x 114 cm (height x width) |
| Original technique: | Oil on canvas |
| Painting style: | Realism and Impressionism |
| Located at: | Musée d’Orsay, Paris, France |
| Our reproduction: | Hand-painted in oil on canvas, 8 sizes or made to measure |
Portrait of Émile Zola – Édouard Manet
What does Portrait of Émile Zola show?
Zola sits in profile, turned to the right, on a chair with patterned upholstery edged by a row of brass studs. He has dark hair, a full brown beard and a serious, focused face. He wears a near-black jacket, with a white cuff showing at the wrist, and pale grey trousers, his legs crossed.
He holds an open illustrated book, yet his gaze slips past the pages, as if he were still turning over what he has read. On the table beside him lie books and papers, a porcelain inkwell with a quill, and a pale blue pamphlet with the name Manet on its cover.
On the left stands a Japanese folding screen with a bird on a blossoming branch above a green landscape. Top right hangs a dark frame holding three sheets: a Japanese print of a wrestler in a wide robe, an engraving after Velázquez and a small reproduction of Manet’s Olympia.
What do the prints on the wall say?
When the portrait was painted, Zola was known above all for his art criticism and as the author of the novel Thérèse Raquin, in which a would-be painter sees his work run down by the critics.
Zola supported Manet publicly in the press. In 1867 he wrote that the public was not used to such simple and direct translations of reality, and he called Manet’s work luminous and serious.
Olympia, which had caused controversy at the Salon of 1865, was in Zola’s view Manet’s best work, so it holds the place of honour on the wall. The engraving after Velázquez’s Bacchus points to the taste for Spanish art that painter and writer shared. The wrestler print is by Utagawa Kuniaki II, and together with the screen on the left it recalls how much the Far East changed European ideas about perspective and colour.
Why is this portrait so well known?
Édouard Manet (1832–1883), born in Paris, was among the first nineteenth-century painters of modern life and a pivotal figure between Realism and Impressionism. Critics often resisted him, but he had committed champions in Zola, Stéphane Mallarmé and Charles Baudelaire, and he drew or painted all three.
This canvas brings together Manet’s own work, Spanish painting and Japanese prints, so beside the writer it also shows the sources the painter drew on.
For more on the novel, the Salon and the prints, see the short Wikipedia article on the portrait, written in English.
Where is the original today?
The original, oil on canvas measuring 146.5 x 114 cm (height x width), belongs to the Musée d’Orsay in Paris, under inventory number RF 2205.
Manet submitted it to the Paris Salon of 1868, a year after the text in which Zola had praised his painting.
Portrait of Émile Zola or another Manet?
This is a canvas painting for anyone who loves books, quiet concentration and deep, dark tones. The upright format suits a home office, a library or a reading corner.
If Manet’s love of Spain appeals to you, look at The Spanish Singer, a guitarist on a green bench, and the dancer in Lola de Valence. A Paris crowd of top hats and masks fills Masked Ball at the Opera, while a single white spear on a marble table is the whole subject of The Asparagus.
You will find other famous Manet paintings that we paint to order on the Édouard Manet page.
How do we hand-paint Portrait of Émile Zola?
Manet’s original is an oil on canvas 146.5 cm high, larger than any of our sizes. What you receive is an oil painting reproduction made on new canvas, built up in oil layer by layer at the size you pick.
The painter starts with the outline of the seated figure, the edge of the table and the frame on the wall, since these three carry the composition. Then come the dark wall and the black jacket, which differ only in shade, and the pale grey trousers. Last he adds the bearded face, the pages, the quill, the screen with its bird and the bright patterns of the chair.
The dark tones need the most care: jacket, wall and the shadow under the table must stay apart so the figure does not sink into the background. That keeps Zola’s profile clear on your wall too.
Which size suits which wall?
In short: 30 x 40 or 36 x 48 cm for a bookshelf, 41 x 55 and 48 x 60 cm above a desk, 61 x 80 and 68 x 90 cm for a hallway or bedroom, and 86 x 115 or 99 x 125 cm above a sofa or in a library.
We paint it in 8 portrait sizes (width x height): 30 x 40, 36 x 48, 41 x 55, 48 x 60, 61 x 80, 68 x 90, 86 x 115 and 99 x 125 cm. The original measures 114 x 146.5 cm (width x height), so every one of our sizes is smaller; the largest, 99 x 125 cm, is 15 cm narrower and 21.5 cm lower.
As a painting for the living room it works best at 86 x 115 or 99 x 125 cm, where the prints on the wall and the books on the table read clearly.
Can I have a different size or a frame?
Yes, within one limit: other proportions are possible, but not larger than 99 x 125 cm, because the photograph we paint from allows no more. We always keep Zola, the table and the framed prints whole and adjust only the edge of the screen or the floor. Send us the size you need for the portrait and we will quote a price and a date.
It ships rolled, stretched on a stretcher bar or ready framed, and our workshop in Slovenia handles the stretching and framing. The moulding for the portrait is chosen in our 3D app, which serves for frame choice only; a view of the painting on your own wall is a separate service.
A dark wood moulding continues the brown frame on Zola’s wall, while a gold one brings out the warm glow of the upholstered chair.
When will my painting arrive?
Work on your Zola starts once you confirm the order, and the painting is ready to ship within 15 to 45 working days. Before packing we send you a photograph of the finished Zola and adjust anything you ask us to.
Shipping within Slovenia and to the rest of the EU carries no customs duties, and our returns policy applies to this portrait as to every order.
A portrait of a writer at his desk makes a fine gift for a keen reader, a teacher, a journalist or the opening of a bookshop. Not sure of the wall? A wall art voucher lets the recipient choose the size.
Frequently asked questions
Where can I see the original?
At the Musée d’Orsay in Paris, under inventory number RF 2205.
Who is the man at the table?
The French writer and art critic Émile Zola, who defended Manet publicly in the press.
Is this a print?
No. Your painting is a hand-painted copy, made by our painter with brushes and oil paint on canvas.
How big is the original?
It measures 146.5 x 114 cm (height x width), so all 8 of our sizes are smaller.
Can I order a size that is not listed?
Yes, as long as it is no larger than 99 x 125 cm; send us the width and height and we will make you an offer.
How long does it take to make?
Allow 15 to 45 working days; a photograph of your finished Zola reaches you before dispatch.
Would this portrait suit a home office or make a good gift?
Yes. The calm scene of a man reading suits a home office or library and pleases anyone who loves books.
What hangs on the wall behind Zola?
A small reproduction of Manet’s Olympia, an engraving after Velázquez’s Bacchus and a Japanese print of a wrestler.
- Subject: Émile Zola with a book at his desk, behind him a Japanese screen and a frame holding Olympia, Velázquez and a Japanese print.
- Original: oil on canvas, 1868, 146.5 x 114 cm, Musée d’Orsay, Paris.
- Ours: an Édouard Manet reproduction painted by hand in oil on canvas, 8 sizes from 30 x 40 to 99 x 125 cm, or made to measure up to that size.
- Worth knowing: Zola defended Manet publicly in the press; Manet submitted the portrait to the Salon of 1868.
