Noa Olympia and Fountain

Noa Minelli

Title: Olympia

Artist: Edouard Manet

Date: 1863

Period/culture: victorian, realism

Location: Musée d'Orsay, Paris France

Size: 3’ 3 3/8” by 6’ 2 3/4”

Patron: n/a

Materials: canvas

Technique: oil paint

Subject Matter / Content:

The painting created by Edouard Manet was a shock to the public. In the past paintings of nudity such as Venus by Titian the women have been portrayed as perfect and as goddesses; however, in Olympia the woman is more like a “real” woman with flaws and awkwardness. It is apparent the woman in the painting is posing for it and her profession is assumed to be prostitution. Unlike the dog in Venus representing fidelity, there is a cat at the end of the bed which represents prostitution. There is a bluntness to the painting from the stare of Olympia to the maid bringing her flowers as she lay nude. This aspect of the painting made viewers uncomfortable. The painting confronts the industry of prostitution, supported by middle and upper-class men in France. The confrontation is one that many people in society were not ready to accept. The technique Manet used in his painting differed from the traditional way of painting in the time, he used cold harsh colors and created an angular and flattened affect. Olympia (was) rejected by many Salons, so Manet rented a hall for his painting to be shown.

Symbolism used (iconography):

The woman symbolizes the real woman of 1863 in Paris verses the perfect Venus who is very often portrayed in art. She symbolizes prostitution and the harsh reality.

Contextual issues relevant to the work:

In France at this time prostitution was not an uncommon thing, especially with middle to upper-class men. However, people were not quite ready to accept this reality and this is a reason why Olympia created such controversy. In this time, art generally depicted the nude woman as a perfect object such as the Venus paintings. By making the woman look real, with imperfections and the bluntness it creates an uncomfortable environment for the viewers during the time of the painting.

Formal qualities to the work:

-The composition of Olympia: Horizontal line created by the bed,  a vertical line created by the gold trim on the wall, and a diagonal created with her body (Don't forget the placement of the maid. All of the elements create a very strong balance within asymmetrical composition).

-The contrast of the light colors on the woman and the darkness of everything else makes her stand out even more and shows her importance. This also gives the illusion that the she is of higher status because she is the main focus of the painting, standing out while the maid blends in with the dark background.

-Monochromatic color scheme (with areas of high contrast), dull colors (dull may not be the best word here, the palette helps to create emphasis and drama)

-The shapes are organic, with the curves of the curtains, pillows, and sheets to the human body. She is not made a “perfect woman” but a real one with imperfections. perfectly imperfect! :)

-The illusion of a three-dimensional form is created with the use of modeling and stacking (overlapping of objects in the composition) of objects, also creating space in the two-dimensional painting.

-The different values in the painting help to draw attention to places such as her hands, and the harsh outline of her body.

Intended Audience of the Work

-Paris salon

-Manet wanted an audience of people who saw the world for what it really was like he did

Functions

-To show the reality of life in France

-bringing a new way to paint the female nude

Symbolic Function

-Challenge the traditional way of painting the female nude like in the paintings of Venus

Related Themes

-Difference in class

-Sexual liberty

-Women in society in 1863

Related Works

-Sleeping Venus- Giorgine

-Maja Desnuda- Goya

-Venus of Urbino- Titian

Title: Fountain

Artist: Marcel Duchamp

Date:1917 (original) (1964 replica)

Period/culture: dada period

Location: San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (1964 replica)

Size: 12” by 15” by 18”

Patron: n/a

Materials: Porcelain urinal

Techniques: interpretation

Content

Duchamp purchased a urinal from J. L Mott iron works for his soon to be the most controversial piece of art in the 20th century. He took the urinal and turned it on its side and entered it in an exhibition. (He also painted R. Mutt 1917 on the urinal. Why?) This piece was rejected and after this Duchamp resigned from his spot as a founding member of the American Society of Independent Artists: an organization that helps to advance ideas of new art. The piece was so controversial because of the fact he didn’t actually make the urinal. Duchamp believed art is not just something you create by hand, but art is the idea itself. Many people thought this piece walked the line of being art at all. Duchamp explains that although he did not make this by hand “he chose it. He took an ordinary article of life, placed it so that its useful significance disappeared under the new title and point of view––created a new thought for that object.”.

Symbolism used (iconography)

The urinal is a symbol of chaos

Contextual Issues relevant to the work

When this piece was originally made World War 1 had begun and there was chaos everywhere. everything was being turned upside down and the Fountain represents this because it is on its side. It is just an everyday object yet it is flipped upside down just like things were in the world at the time. (this is a good place to mention his connection to the Dadaist artists who were his peers at the time)

Formal qualities

The Fountain is white porcelain with a smooth cold surface. It is a three-dimensional form, taking up space and creating a composition. The urinal is a symmetrical object with high contrast in light and dark (what are the dark areas? describe...) giving depth to the piece and brings attention to how simple it is. It has an organic shape, similar to a pear.

Intended Audience of the Work

-People living in the world during World War I

-artist to compare the new form of art Duchamp was introducing

Function

-Challenges the traditional way of doing art in Duchamp’s time by turning a urinal on its side and calling it art

-Shows there is not just one way of doing things and that art can just be the idea, not just the technique and skill

Symbolic Function

-By flipping the urinal on its side, Duchamp shows how the world is being flipped on its side because of the war, even everyday objects such as urinals

Related Themes

-What makes something art?

-The chaos of war

Related Works

Bicycle Wheel- Duchamp

Bottle Rack- Duchamp

Great work overall, Noa!!! Ms. H.W. :)

Cara Joyce- Olympia and Fountain

Title: Olympia

Artist: Edouard Manet

Date: 1863

Period: Realism

Location: Musee d’Orsay

Scale/Size: H: 130, W: 190 cm

Materials: Oil on Canvas

Technique: Oil

Subject Matter/Content:

• This is a painting of a French prostitute named Olympia. Taking inspiration from The Venus of Urbino by Titian, Manet stripped the traditional characteristics of a female nude (idealistic/perfected features) away, and instead created this piece of a ‘real’ woman. Olympia’s facial features are asymmetrical, and contrast the typical attributes of Renaissance paintings of the nude (perfect facial/bone structure). Although a ‘real’ woman, it is still indicated that Olympia is wealthy as she is adorned in jewelry and other accessories. She is classified as a courtesan; a woman thought to be at the top of the prostitutional hierarchy. Olympia’s gaze as well as her body positioning gave off the idea that prostitution was civilized. This was shocking to many and was considered extremely improper.

Symbolism Used:

• Olympia symbolizes everyday life in Paris during the 19th century. Even life in the upper class had a whole other side to it, as we see in this piece. It is assumed that Olympia is a courtesan, or a wealthy prostitute. This is a reality is one that many refused to face, and part of the reason why the work sparked so much controversy.

Contextual Issues Relevant to the Work:

• During the time Olympia was painted, it was typical for female nudes to include idealistic features. Manet countered these ideals, and painted Olympia as a woman aware of her flaws. She, along with all of her imperfections stare and jump out of the painting at us. This was an extremely uncommon technique, that many were unused to.

Formal Qualities:

• Heavy contrast between the foreground and background. The foreground appears very light, while the background features extremely dark coloring. This draws the viewer’s eyes to Olympia.
• Includes a variety of different lines. Lines around Olympia’s hands and feet are bolder, and more defined as opposed to those on the rest of her body.
• Texture along bed, hands, face, and feet is present, while the rest of Olympia’s body is flat and lacks texture.
• Coloring emphasizes Olympia and indicates her as the focal point of the piece.
• Value is varied throughout the piece. Value is prominent around the places where texture appears (face, hands, feet). Allows for these parts to stand out more than others.

Intended Audience:

• Manet’s modern depiction of the female nude sparked much debate and angered many. The painting was originally exhibited at the Paris Salon of 1865. Manet preached that he simply drew what he saw. He wanted to draw a new audience; one who accepted and recognized the ‘real’ world.

Function(s):

• The primary function of this piece was to create what is seen in the ‘real’ world, and to put a modern twist on the classical female nude. Female nudes were often painted with perfected features, something of which Manet did not intend to capture. He opposed the traditional art in France at that time, which glorified the French state. Manet wanted to apprehend reality and everyday life which is reflected in his work of Olympia.

Symbolic Function(s):

• The symbolic function of Olympia was to put a modern twist on the female nude to allow for a newfound acceptance of everyday life in the art world.

Related Themes:

• The themes that go along with the piece are those such as reality of everyday life, and women's role in French society in the 19th century.

Related Work:

• Titian’s Venus of Urbino

Title: Fountain  
Artist: Marcel Duchamp

Date: 1964

Period: Dada

Location: San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (1964)

Scale/Size: 15 in. x 19 ¼ in.

Materials: Porcelain

Technique: Paint and glaze

Formal Qualities

• Texture of the piece is smooth and level. Material (porcelain) a very smooth looking material.
• Symmetrically balanced.
• Black signature of ‘R Mutt’ contrasts white of the glazed porcelain. Limited coloring emphasizes simplicity.
• Three dimensional form.

Subject Matter

• This piece is a urinal balanced on its side. In black paint includes the name ‘R. Mutt’. It is assumed the piece is placed on its side to symbolize the hectic lifestyle that was common during Duchamp’s time.

Symbolism

• Duchamp created Fountain during World War One; a time of turmoil and destruction. Duchamp’s idea to turn an everyday object on its side symbolizes the upside-down world he and everyone else were living in.

Contextual Issues

• Duchamp’s submission of Fountain sparked much debate. Many people refused to believe a urinal could pass as art. It brought up the frequently asked question of ‘What is art?’ and had many people question this idea. This piece was also apart of the Dada movement, an art and literature movement that arose in response to World War One. The movement allowed for people to express their ideas on war, and its results.

Intended Audience

• Duchamp wanted to connect with everyone else experiencing the turmoil that came along with World War One. His interpretation of the art was most likely to be very similar than those who were living during this time.

Function

• Duchamp’s function of this piece was to challenge the idea of what made something art. His work expressed that interpretation has a lot to do with what makes art, art.

Symbolic Function

• Taking the urinal and placing it upside down is symbolic to the upside down world Duchamp was living in at the time.

Related Themes

• Question of ‘what is art?’
• War and its effects on society

Related Works

• Untitled - Hans Arp

Fountain and Olympia -- Chloe Fiegener

Title: Fountain 

Artist: Marcel Duchamp

Date: 1964 (original 1917)

Period/Culture: Dada period

Location: (1964 versions) Indiana University, 

San Fransisco Museum of Modern Art, 

National Gallery of Canada, 

Centre Georges Pompidou, Tate Modern

Scale/Size: 15 in. x 19 1/4 in. x 24 5/8 in.

Patron: n/a

Materials: Ceramic, paint

Technique: Glazed the ceramic and 

painted some of it black

Subject Matter/Content:

This piece consists of a white urinal on its side with the name “R. Mutt” painted in black on it.  The urinal is on its side to depict the upside-down world Duchamp was living in at the time he produced Fountain.

Symbolism Used (Iconography):

Beside the idea that the world Duchamp was living in was “upside-down” (living in WWI) and therefore the idea that one of life’s most ordinary and unartistic objects was even turn on its side in the tumult the world was experiencing, there is even a more iconic idea that Duchamp depicted.  Duchamp had taken a toilet and called it art, and therefore asked the world “what constitutes as art?”

Contextual Issues Relevant to Work:

The conflict of the question Duchamp introduced was an issue for Duchamp, the piece, and art as a whole.  Duchamp submitted Fountain to an exhibition, but it wasn’t included in the show because the people who conducted it didn’t consider it art.  To the world of viewers of art, it was inane and grotesque to see a urinal be called a “work of art”, but to some artists it made them question if someone could make anything art.  It was one of the leading pieces of art in the Dada movement—an art movement that was majorly anti-art—because it asked people if anything could be made art if you look at it through a different perspective.

Formal Qualities of this Work:

— The piece is on it’s side to suggest that even the most everyday object, like a urinal, has been turned on its side in the utter confusion of WWI

— “R. Mutt” might be an allusion to the name of the company that provided the urinal Duchamp used

Intended Audience of the Work:

The intended audience of this work was the rest of the world who was suffering from the chaos of WWI.  Also it was the artists who had become bored with the repetitive subjects of art

Related Themes:

— What is art?

— Anti-war

— Chaos

Related Works:

— Bottle Rack by Marcel Duchamp

— Kurt Schwitters’ collages

Title: Olympia 

Artist: Edouard Manet

Date: 1863

Period/Culture: Realism, 

Victorian, Nude

Location: Musée d’Orsay, Paris

Scale/Size: 51.4 in × 74.8 in

Patron: n/a

Materials: Canvas

Technique: Oil

Subject Matter/Content:

This piece consists of a woman, who is presumably a prostitute or a “demi-mondaine” according to features of her dress, who is lying on a bed and looking directly at the painter/viewer.  An African-American maid brings to her flowers to her from, presumably, a customer.  A black cat, which is an archaic symbol for prostitution, stands at the end of the bed.

Symbolism Used (Iconography):

Olympia—which is the name of the prostitute (we don’t know for sure but we can assume)—is staring directly at the viewer/painter, as if you have just walked in the door as her customer and have caught her attention.  It was Olympia’s stare that caused the conflict that erupted when Olympia was first shown.  With her stare she exhibited the stark reality of a prostitute and you had to face the reality of it with her.

Contextual Issues Relevant to Work:

When Olympia was painted, it was irregular to portray a woman in the way Manet portrayed Olympia.  Women were historically sexualized as a goddess of love like in Titian’s Venus of Urbino or glorified as a mother or faithful wife like in Raphael’s Madonnas, but Manet painted a flawed woman showing her sexual liberty and the reality of her occupation as a prostitute.  This painting that was suddenly not according to the standards of female nudes caused an outcry in the world of art and called “grotesque” and “immoral” by some.

Formal Qualities of this Work:

— Olympia’s hand is pressed over her legs to show her sexual liberty in being ably to deny or accept sex

— Her position mimics the positions of classical Aphrodites, but the way she was painted (with quick brushstrokes and under harsh lighting) was not meant to seduce or entice viewers

— She looks directly at the painter/viewer, as if she is looking at you

— She ignores the gift from her client

Intended Audience of the Work:

Possibly those who are bored of painting women in the same style and want to introduce realism to the world of art—where you paint average people as they are.

Related Themes:

— The sexual liberty of women

— Common people

— Women in society

Related Works:

— Titian’s Venus of Urbino

— Giorgine’s Sleeping Venus

— Goya’s La maja desnuda

Caroline Olympia

Caroline Tripodi

Title: Olympia                                                           

Artist(s) / Architect(s): Edouard Manet                                                                                                    

Date: 1863                                                                 

Period / Culture:                                                     

Location: Musee d’Orsay, Paris, France                  

Scale / Size: 3’3³/₈ x 6’2³/₄                                                                                                            

Materials: Oil Painting                                               

Techniques: Oil on canvas   

                                  

Subject Matter / Content:  The painting above displays a nude women reclining on a bed with a servant standing above her holding flowers. When painting this image in the early 1860’s, Manet chose to replicate the painting Venus of Urbino, but he incorporated a number of changes to modernize his work. Paintings of nude women were very pervasive throughout art history, however most artists portrayed women in an idealistic from (form), eliminating all flaws. Manet chose to be realistic with his painting of Olympia, and he painted her in a way that a normal woman would appear. (be careful, not all "normal" women look like Olympia) Her body is flat and lean, her face is pale and not entirely symmetrical, and her eyes give a penetrating glare that often startles viewers. In fact, the black cat on the end of the bed, which replaced the dog in the painting of Venus, even appears startled at the sight of Olympia. Yes, indeed! :)

Symbolism Used (iconography): There are many uses of symbolism in Manet’s painting of Olympia. The few garments that Olympia is wearing symbolize wealth, since the shoes and jewelry appear to be expensive accessories. The fact that she is naked implies that Olympia may in fact be a prostitute, despite her wealth. The name Olympia also symbolizes prostitution, which is probably why Manet selected it. The flowers that the servant hands Olympia could also represent a gift from one of her clients. The presence of the servant in the painting in general symbolizes the wide class distinction between the two women.                                                                                                         

Contextual Issues Relevant to the Work: This painting was done while slavery still existed in many parts of the world, including the United States, which was struggling through the Civil War. As a result, the presence of a black servant in the painting was not as controversial as it would have been today. It was still normal to view African American individuals as less than human, even in artwork. This conversation about slavery in art, specifically this painting, should be researched more if you are going to refer to this when writing about "Olympia." One could draw parallels between prostitution and slavery in this painting but Manet was focused on breaking with tradition and creating a new language in art. Our conversation in class was a side-note to help us better understand how one might view this work today. More research is required) However something that was very controversial was the humanizing of a prostitute. Many viewers were offended by the looks and portrayal of this prostitute, and they did not want to be reminded of the “darker side of life.”                                                                                                                                    

Formal Qualities of the Work (include Style here): -The contrasting colors and light values in this painting have a very significant impact. All of the colors and objects surrounding Olympia are very dark, including the skin of the servant and the black cat. These dark colors create contrast draw the viewers’ eyes to the center of the painting, where Olympia is portrayed with a very light value.

-The very distinct lines and details on her left hand draw attention to her crotch area, while her breast area is very faded and undefined.

-The overall composition of the painting closely resembles the painting of Venus of Urbino. How?

Intended Audience: The French public and artists who only portray realistic figures.        

(Symbolic) Functions: Sends a message to viewers that it is important to portray women in their realistic forms as well. 

Meaning: 

• Portray a woman in  a realistic way  
• Convey a controversial idea- humanize prostitution
• Convey a class distinction
• Parallel other famous works of art      

Related Themes: 
Woman in a nude form
mythological art
class distinction
Womans role in society
Prostitution

Related Works from the Course: 
Venus of Urbino by Titian
Yasumasa Morimura's Portrait [Futago]

Overall, good work! A bit more research required... Ms.H.W. :)