Olympia
Artist: Edouard Manet
Year Composed: 1863
Artistic Movement: Impressionism
Nationality: France
Floor Found in Château: Second Floor
Year Composed: 1863
Artistic Movement: Impressionism
Nationality: France
Floor Found in Château: Second Floor
About the Artwork
Édouard Manet's Olympia is regarded as a risqué painting, not because of its nudity. Created for the Paris Salon in 1865, critics and the public were shocked at the fact that the woman, who resembles a reclining depiction of the Roman goddess, Venus, is staring straight out of the canvas toward the viewer. This brought extreme criticism to the painting as it is symbolic of an invitation rather than one of admiration. Prior representation of Venus and nude woman were not looking toward the viewer. However, Manet's Olympia breaks that tradition.
About the Artist
Édouard Manet was born in Paris, France, and was one of the first painters to depict modern life within his art. This proved to be a pivotal transition between Realism into the realm of Impressionism, which Manet excelled. His loose brushstrokes that can be seen throughout his paintings highlight the elements of the Impressionist Age of art, and can be seen within his modern scenes of The Luncheon on the Grass (1863), Music in the Tuileries (1862), and Olympia (1863). Influenced by fellow Frenchman Gustave Courbet, Manet's paintings depicted the everyday life of French society.
About the Movement
Olympia was composed in the Impressionist Age of art. Impressionism was characterized by extremely loose brushstrokes that were visible throughout the entire painting. This 19th-Century (or 1800s) art movement took landscapes, figures, and objects and incorporated both movement and emotion. Impressionism, in a matter of style, was almost the blending between Cubism and Baroque art; that dramatic and emotional appeal of the Baroque mixed with the inclusion of motion and the passing of time of Cubism. Some of the most famous Impressionist artists included Claude Monet, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, and Edgar Degas.
Location of Original Work of Art: Musée d'Orsay, Paris, France
Édouard Manet's Olympia is regarded as a risqué painting, not because of its nudity. Created for the Paris Salon in 1865, critics and the public were shocked at the fact that the woman, who resembles a reclining depiction of the Roman goddess, Venus, is staring straight out of the canvas toward the viewer. This brought extreme criticism to the painting as it is symbolic of an invitation rather than one of admiration. Prior representation of Venus and nude woman were not looking toward the viewer. However, Manet's Olympia breaks that tradition.
About the Artist
Édouard Manet was born in Paris, France, and was one of the first painters to depict modern life within his art. This proved to be a pivotal transition between Realism into the realm of Impressionism, which Manet excelled. His loose brushstrokes that can be seen throughout his paintings highlight the elements of the Impressionist Age of art, and can be seen within his modern scenes of The Luncheon on the Grass (1863), Music in the Tuileries (1862), and Olympia (1863). Influenced by fellow Frenchman Gustave Courbet, Manet's paintings depicted the everyday life of French society.
About the Movement
Olympia was composed in the Impressionist Age of art. Impressionism was characterized by extremely loose brushstrokes that were visible throughout the entire painting. This 19th-Century (or 1800s) art movement took landscapes, figures, and objects and incorporated both movement and emotion. Impressionism, in a matter of style, was almost the blending between Cubism and Baroque art; that dramatic and emotional appeal of the Baroque mixed with the inclusion of motion and the passing of time of Cubism. Some of the most famous Impressionist artists included Claude Monet, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, and Edgar Degas.
Location of Original Work of Art: Musée d'Orsay, Paris, France