Édouard Manet

Estate of the artist (sale: Hôtel Drouot, Paris, Vente Manet, 4th & 5th February 1884, lot 167)
Mlle Dieterle, Paris
Charles S. Carstairs, London
M. Knoedler & Co., London (acquired from the estate of the above in 1928)
Private Collection, acquired from the above in May 1929
Mr & Mrs Pepke, Chicago
Acquired from the above by the present owner, circa 1999

Philadelphia, Philadelphia Museum of Art & Chicago, The Art Institute of Chicago, Édouard Manet, 1832-1883, 1966-68, no. 199, illustrated in the catalogue
Chicago, The Art Institute of Chicago, Masterpieces from Private Collections from Chicago, 1969
Switzerland, Martigny, Fondation Pierre Gianadda, Manet, 1996, no. 92, illustrated in colour in the catalogue

Theodore Duret, Histoire d'Édouard Manet et son œuvre, Paris, 1902, no. 8, p. 280
Etienne Moreau-Nélaton, Manet raconté par lui-même, Paris, 1926, vol. II, mentioned pp. 98 & 99
Paul Jamot & Georges Wildenstein, Manet, Paris, 1932, vol. I, no. 532, catalogued p. 183; vol. II, illustrated fig. 270
Adolphe Tabarant, Manet et ses œuvres, Paris, 1947, no. 533, illustrated p. 619
Sandra Orienti, The Complete Paintings of Manet, New York, 1967, no. 393b, p. 118
M. Bodelsen, 'Early Impressionist Sales, 1874-1894', in Burlington Magazine, vol. 110, no. 783, June 1968, pp. 330-339
Denis Rouart & Daniel Wildenstein, Édouard Manet, Catalogue raisonné, pastels, aquarelles et dessins, Lausanne, 1975, vol. II, no. 70, illustrated p. 27

The canvas is not lined. There are pinholes at intervals around the edge of the work (not visible when framed). Apart from some minor studio and surface dirt this work is in good original condition. Colours: Overall fairly accurate although the colours are brighter and crisper, and the background less grey in the original.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

The sitter in the present work was the sister-in-law of a friend of Degas's, Henri Michel-Lévy, a collector of 18th century French art and a painter in his own right. He was a scion of the Lévy publishing dynasty, whose prestigious publishing house held the rights for many of the leading lights of French literature, including the works of Baudelaire. This is the second portrait of Mme Michel Lévy created by Manet in 1882; the first was his largest pastel-portrait of 1882, currently in the National Gallery of Art, Washington. 

In the present work, the sitter wears the same earrings, necklace with medallion and probably the same ruche-laced, square-necked dress more fully rendered in the National Gallery portrait. However there are also some minor differences; in the present work Madame Lévy is wearing a diadem and obviously the choice of an oval format. This work is probably a study for the larger pastel and shows the artist experimenting with the pastel medium.