The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of May 21, 2026

A horizontally oriented lithograph in gestural black strokes on off-white paper depicts a horse race. Furthest left, three riders gallop toward dark trees. Next, a diagonal fence recedes from the center, bordering a crowd of figures rendered with scribbled marks. To the right, two figures wearing hats sit above the crowd. Finally, broad, sketchy strokes form clouds around a large circular outline in the sky.

The Races

1865

Édouard Manet

(French, 1832–1883)
France, 19th century
lithograph
Sheet: 52.2 x 66.5 cm (20 9/16 x 26 3/16 in.); Image: 40.3 x 51.7 cm (15 7/8 x 20 3/8 in.)
Dudley P. Allen Fund 1951.64
Catalogue raisonné: Harris 41
Location: Not on view

Description

The Races is based on Manet's painting The Races at Longchamp. The lithograph, however, conveys the excitement of horse racing even more than the painting. Energy and movement are suggested by bold, quickly drawn lines and by rapid, curving smudges. The unrestrained, spontaneous use of the lithographic crayon foreshadows the expressiveness of 20th-century printmaking.
  • Richards, Louise. "Prints of Edouard Manet." The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 44, no. 8 (October 1957): 187-191. Mentioned: p. 188; Reproduced: p. 189 www.jstor.org
  • Time Stands Still: Muybridge and the Instantaneous Photography Movement. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (February 15-May 16, 2004).
    Cleveland, Ohio: The Cleveland Museum of Art; February 15 - May 16, 2004. "Time Stands Still: Muybridge and the Instantaneous Photography Movement". Not in exh. cat.
    Inventive Impressions: 18th- and 19-Century French Prints. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (August 26-October 28, 2001).
    The Cleveland Museum of Art; 8/26/01-10/28/01. "Inventive Impressions: 18th- and 19th-Century French Prints".
    The Impressionist Aesthetic. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (August 10-October 31, 1982).
    Department of Prints and Drawings Opening Exhibition. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (March 3, 1958-October 11, 1959).
  • {{cite web|title=The Races|url=false|author=Édouard Manet|year=1865|access-date=21 May 2026|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1951.64