ZOLA (Émile). - Lot 90

ZOLA (Émile). Éd. Manet. Paris: E. Dentu, 1867. - In-8, 233 x 151: portrait, 48 pp. 1 plate, printed cover. Red half-maroquin with corners, gilt fillets, spine ribbed and decorated, gilt head, cover preserved (E. Carayon). The first edition of Zola's biographical and critical study of his friend Édouard Manet, first published in the Revue du XIXe siècle on January 1, 1867. More than a simple biography, this work constitutes a veritable defense of the man and his work, in particular the painting Olympia. Presented at the 1865 Salon, this painting of a high-priced prostitute caused a veritable scandal, the name "Olympia" being a pseudonym for a cocotte. Zola was one of the work's most ardent defenders: "In 1865, Édouard Manet was again received at the Salon; he exhibited a Jesus insulted by soldiers, & his masterpiece, his Olympia. I said masterpiece, and I don't withdraw the word. I claim that this canvas is truly the flesh & blood of the painter. It contains all of him, and only him. It will remain as the characteristic work of his talent, as the highest mark of his power" (p. 34). This brochure was sold at the retrospective exhibition organized by Manet in a pavilion built at his own expense at the Alma, on the sidelines of the 1867 Universal Exhibition and Salon, from which he had been excluded. It is illustrated with a copper-engraved portrait of Manet by Bracquemont, and an original etching by Manet of his painting Olympia. Beautiful copy bound by Carayon. Rubbing to spine, hinges and corners. Interior very well preserved.