Like nearly every work in this show, Manet's real interest was the brush mark of the trousers, tablecloth, lemon zest, vase, coffeepot and smudgy cat.

WSJ: Review: Manet's Different Strokes | 'Manet: Portraying Life' at the Royal Academy in London

Each and every smudgy thumb-print was scrutinised: The shaky blue splodge, the inky comet trailing blue splashes, the giant thumbs so large they had somehow voted for two parties rather than one.

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