Inside Iowa State

August 12, 2004

Trio offers fresh take on Manet's 'Luncheon'

Three Des Moines artists challenged each other to create an artistic response to Edouard Manet's "Luncheon on the Grass." The results of that challenge among John Phillip Davis, Chris Vance and Shawn Wolter will be on display in the Memorial Union Gallery through Sept. 19.

Manet lived in Paris in the middle part of the 19th century. His work helped provide a transition from realism to Impressionism. He broke new ground in stressing the arrangement of paint on the canvas rather than what the paint depicted. "Luncheon on the Grass" received a hostile reaction from critics at an 1863 exhibition, but was enthusiastically embraced by a group of young painters who later formed the nucleus of the Impressionists.

"When challenged with the idea, I thought I would do something artists have been doing since the beginning of art," Vance said. "I took the composition and put my own sense of style into it.

"I have felt over the over the past few years that my work has taken on a landscape feel, so this particular painting spoke to me," he added. "Manet was a master of symbolism, so I did change a few things because I wanted to leave it up to the viewer to decide what they mean."

Call 292-1111 for open viewing times at the Gallery.

Manet's "Luncheon on the Grass"

Vance's interpretation of "Luncheon on the Grass"

"When challenged with the idea, I thought I would do something artists have been doing since the beginning of art. I took the composition and put my own sense of style into it."

Chris Vance