From Ferdinando de’ Medici to Edouard Manet: The Lemon, the Object of All Passions

An iconic citrus fruit of the Mediterranean landscape, the lemon is featured in Villa Medici’s spring program thanks to the exceptional loan from the Musée d’Orsay of the work Le Citron (The Lemon) painted by Edouard Manet in 1880, exhibited for three months in the Cardinal de’ Medici’s historic rooms, the highlight of the guided tour of Villa Medici. 
 
The silent presence of the Lemon, which seems to summon all the senses, will be part of a writing residency in April by French author and philosopher Vinciane Despret in pursuit of what the fruit may reveal. 
 
In the 16th century, orange, lemon, sour orange, and citron trees were abundant in the vast garden of the estate acquired by Ferdinando I de’ Medici in 1576. Carefully tended by gardeners to preserve their size and flavor, citrus fruits supplied Ferdinando I de’ Medici’s table, while their blossoms and peels could be candied, pickled, or transformed into fragrant oils and distilled in the palace’s fonderia. In particular, the citron, or mala medica, was cultivated for its pharmacological virtues: it relieved fevers and could neutralize poisons. Today, visitors to Villa Medici are reminded of the precious citrus fruit when they contemplate the painted vault of the stanza degli uccelli (“bird room”), Ferdinando’s private study.
 
From Rome to Paris, from one citrus passion to another: three centuries after the birth of Ferdinando I de’ Medici’s fruit collection, Edouard Manet (Paris, 1832-1883) painted Le Citron. Despite its modest size (14 x 22 cm), this painting is one of the powerful still lifes by the painter who claimed to be the “Saint Francis of the still life.” Here, the painter has isolated the yellow-hued fruit on a sober, black-glazed ceramic saucer that brings out the essential: its strident color, texture, and simplicity. 
 
In 2024, the French Ministry of Culture and the Musée d'Orsay will be celebrating 150 years of Impressionism. In conjunction with the exhibition Paris 1874. Inventer l’impressionnisme (Paris 1874: Inventing Impressionism), to be held in Paris, some 180 works exceptionally loaned by the Musée d'Orsay are to be discovered in over 30 museums in France. Manet’s Le Citron will thus be in the spotlight at Villa Medici, forging a link with the Medici family’s passion for citrus fruit.

Vai alla guida d'arte di Rome