Manet, Édouard (1832-1883)
Tama, le chien japonais (Tama, the Japanese Dog)
c.1875
Oil on canvas, 61 x 50 cm
National Gallery of Art, Washington
A small, shaggy, black and white dog stands in a wood paneled room with its body angled to our right but turning its head, pink tongue out, to our left in this vertical painting. The animal is painted with loose brushstrokes that evoke the dog’s long, feathery fur. The dog peers to our left with golden brown eyes. It is black along its flanks and ears, with a stripe of white down the center of the head, and on the muzzle. The chest, belly, and legs are also white, and the bushy tail, which curls up and out like a fountain, is a mixture of black and white. Leaning on the paneling behind the dog to our right is a light wood walking stick. An object, presumably a stuffed toy in the shape of a person wearing a long black robe lined in crimson, lies on the brownish sage-green floor in front of the dog. The dog’s name, “TAMA,” appears in tan block letters at the upper left. The artist signed the work in the lower right corner, “Manet.” (NGA)