It happened so quickly — my husband left the newspaper open for me on the dining room table, since he had to go in so early.  This was this past Saturday.  After I fed the fish I saw the paper and bent closer to examine the Manet painting there.  Then I read that it is at the Toledo Museum of Art, which is only three hours from us!

I squealed, ran upstairs, mapquested it, printed directions, and began frantically texting my husband: “Plz plz plz can we go tomorrow??” He said yes!

Needless to say, we went yesterday, and I am not at all sorry!  I saw many paintings I thought I might never get to see — the collection brings together paintings from nine different countries.

This exhibit is the first of its kind mounted, cosponsored by the Royal Academy of Arts, London, and Toledo is the only U.S. venue where the show will be.  It will be there until January 1, 2013.

Some of the paintings there: The Tragic Actor, Berthe Moirsot with a Bunch of Violets, The Monet Family, The Railway, and many more!  If you are a Manet lover, you must see this collection.

There were so many I loved that it’s hard to pick out a favorite.  Some of them I wasn’t familiar with.

A pair of the Dutch tradition in particular stood out: Boy Blowing Bubbles and The Smoker.  They both hold long objects which involve blowing through them — the smoker holds a pipe, of course, and both resultant substances — bubbles and smoke — signal the transitory nature of life.  One is old, one is new.  I would have liked to have seen these paintings side by side, but alas they were in separate galleries.  So I will combine them here, just for you.

What do you think?

For more information, go to the museum’s website: http://www.toledomuseum.org/exhibitions/manet/