The French painter Edouard Manet broke new ground by defying traditional techniques of representation and by choosing subjects from the events and circumstances of his own time. Growing up, Manet was a poor student, only interested in the special drawing course offered by the school. Although his father wanted him to enroll in law school, Édouard was determined to become a painter. In 1850, Manet entered the studio of Thomas Couture, where he would get a good grasp of drawing and pictorial technique. Manet’s debut as a painter met with a critical resistance until near the end of his career when there was critical acceptance of the Impressionists.