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Thursday 24 January 2013

Oysters - Sepia Saturday

In a week when a Manet exhibition made the news it just had to be the oysters that I chose to concentrate on.


Édouard Manet lived from 1832 - 1883. He would have been alive when this picture appeared.

Dredging for Oysters - 1874-1875
(Popular Science Monthly)

What's Manet got to do with it?

Édouard Manet c1870
 (By Nadar 1820-1910)

 Well I doubt that Manet's  inspiration came from that dredging picture but for sure he knew what oysters were.

Oysters - Manet 1862
 (Oil on Canvas - National Gallery of Art, Washington DC)

Judging by his painting I'm certain his means of eating his oysters would have been more refined than this.

Slurping Oysters - La Capucin Gourmand 1884
I have never been a fan of shell fish, oysters least of all so before you slip off  for further pearls of wisdom just beware of

A Banana Skin
 (Simon Speed 170412 - CC0 1.0)

along your way to sepia-saturday-161 





25 comments:

Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy said...

Loved this, Bob! I love pan-fried fried oysters, but would never try a raw one because I don't want to chance getting sick.

Enjoyed learning more about Mr. Manet.

Kathy M.

John said...

I enjoyed the associations you made from the themed photograph to the artwork.

Unknown said...

Interesting link, just love the Slurping Monk. Capucin; a Monk and a Monkey, and a Mountain feature and a type of pigeon - an Autumn delicacy

Hilary Melton-Butcher said...

Hi Bob .. are you out of kilter? - or in Yorkshire without a kilt? bearing in mind it's very cold and it's Burn's Night tomorrow ...

I love these pictures ... I'd go and see the Oysters on .. but I think they're focusing on portraits and his approach ...

I could happily eat oysters for many a half-hour or two or three .. as long as there was some champers .. fizzy wine I guess in this day and age ..

Great selection here ... cheers Hilary

Wendy said...

Not an oyster person either. But eating raw or steamed oysters is popular around here. I prefer Manet's version of oysters, thank-you.

Karen said...

I'm not keen on oysters either, but I found your post very interesting.

Peter said...

I notice that the English word 'slurping' has the same meaning as the Dutch word 'slurpen'. Funny. Wonder who was first ;)

Jo said...

Once I didn't like oysters, after living in North Carolina, I learned to slurp them. Your pictures made me hungry.

tony said...

Great Post Bob! I Have to say, Oysters are not my Cup Of Tea..come to think of it...Tea is not my cup of tea either! (but that's another story)..anyway........But I am one of life's slurpers! I tend to imbibe my spaghetti in the same fashion as yer monk does!

North County Film Club said...

Yes, we both decided to post about oysters this week. I really don't like them at all, but that painting by Manet makes them look really tasty. Great post.
Nancy

The Pink Geranium or Jan's Place said...

Great post..you guys were so smart to pick up on oysters..great shots of them..though I can not even look at them, and we have plenty over on our coast areas here in Washington State.

Postcardy said...

I have never eaten oysters that are raw or need to be slurped. I am most familiar with the smoked baby oysters that come in cans.

Brett Payne said...

I love oysters, raw and very fresh, not smoked, with a squeeze of lemon - absolutely delicious. Manet got it just right.

Hazel said...

Not a fan of oysters either but I love pearls. Slurping Oysters - how apt a name for the La Capucin Gourmand photo!

ScotSue said...

What an intriguing post! I must admit I have never eaten oysters, but I enjoyed your images and especially the Slurping Oyster.

ifthethunderdontgetya™³²®© said...

Raw oysters are delicious, people.

You just have to get over the initial "ick" factor...
~

viridian said...

I have not seen that Manet painting before - thanks for sharing. I found a Chicago oyster store for my contibution!

Anonymous said...

Interesting oost, Bob. I've had canned oysters once, and I suspect that will be the last time. I'm not a fan of slurpen any of my food :-) Jo

Mike Brubaker said...

The oysters in the theme photo were eaten in Raleigh, North Carolina which is some distance from the ocean and even farther from New Orleans. Fresh "ersters" probably came from the Albemarle Sound on the Atlantic where the native dialect still has a very English twang that is different from a southern drawl. The same English voice is found in the Chesapeake too where watermen have been harvesting oysters since colonial times.

Helen Killeen Bauch McHargue said...

I love the illustration of what's happening both above and below the water. La Capucin slurping reminds us that it wasn't just suffer, suffer, suffer in the monasteries.

Alan Burnett said...

Another great example of the "connections" approach. It is like playing that word association game but with pictures rather than words. Mind you, Bob, beware - it opens up a Dorma window to the soul.

Lavender and Vanilla Friends of the Gardens said...

Bob, I love oysters fresh from the Tasman sea; Just the taste of the sea and a little lemon!! Beautiful Paintings; Oysters must have been at one stage a common food. Know all about Bananas, I grow them, and there is no comparison to a home grown Banana.

21 Wits said...

Wow Bob, you sure took my on a wonderful and tasty post- yummy thoughtful Oysters and such a journey to the final-banana finish! Bravo!

Little Nell said...

I wonder what noise annoys an oyster - perhaps the sound of that monk slurping?

Bruno Laliberté said...

Well, I fancy myself knowledgeable in Art, and I was wondering how you'd bring Manet in, but I had completely forgotten that still life with the oysters. I love shellfish. It's fish that I have issues with, unless it's in a sushi!! But once you've cooked fish, you've pretty much ruined it for me.
:D~
HUGZ