Olympia by Manet
Deconstructing the painting
“Olympia” by Edouard Manet is a modern art done in 1865, is an oil painting. Olympia was modeled by Victorine Meurent. It has been stated that Manet had copied the posture of the painting Venus of Urbino of Titian and had shown it in the form of Olympia. Olympia was a name associated with prostitutes in 1860s, Paris. The painting shows Olympia as a naked woman leaning on the pillow and a servant is shown passing a bouquet of flowers to her, one can also see a black cat near the foot of the woman. During the 1860s black cats symbolized prostitution.
Some things that indicated Olympia as a prostitute include the orchid in her hair, her bracelet, pearl earrings, and the oriental shawl on which she lies, The black ribbon around her neck, is in contrast with her pale flesh, and her slipper shows her as a sexually attractive woman.
The painting seems to be flat as it does not give a 3d image to the viewers. The composition of the painting also seems to be very interesting as one can see a servant passing flowers to the woman, it is said that as Olympia was a prostitute so maybe the flowers were from her customer.
The features of Olympia have not been idolized or perfected, as one can see the face and the body of the Olympia seems to be of real women, her facial features are not symmetrical and her lips are thin. She does not have a well-defined jawline. Her hair to me seems to be rough and it has not been stylized. By stylized I mean is not been given curves in the end or is not shown to be shiny, the hair is very neatly tied at the back and just has a simple flower attached to it. Even when one looks at the naked body of Olympia her muscles are not toned. The posture of Olympia shows her hands to be stiff and in a blocking position. It seems as if she is putting a restriction on the viewers. She is restricting the views from looking at her without any hesitation. It seems like she is trying to show her authority. Her posture also shows the confidence she has.
When one looks at the surrounding it seems to be very simple and realistic, it looks like a real apartment. It has dull wallpaper with a dark green curtain, a bed with a messy bed sheet, and a blanket, if one looks at the painting Venus of Urbino it has a very sophisticated and rich look to it. One can also see the fabric difference in the two paintings of the bedsheet, in the Venus of Urbino painting the sheet looks of better quality, it has a slight shine to it, whereas in Olympia the sheets look dull and used. It does not have a very well defined detailed work on the curtains and the walls as one can just see the patterns merging into one another
“Olympia” stands to be a very different painting and also challenging because it does make a viewer feel a little uncomfortable at first as the naked woman ‘Olympia’ is looking at him or her directly. One will also notice that she has an expression that indicates as if she is looking at you and thinking about something. In the painting, the brushwork done is different as we see the colors don’t seem to be merging with one another completely. The quick brushstrokes, not having mush mid-tones, large color surfaces are some of the other points that make the painting different.
Olympia is a real woman whose nakedness is emphasized by the pale colors. The lighting of the painting is done in such a way that Olympia is standing out. The background is painted in dull and dark color indicating that Manet wanted to make the viewer see Olympia as the main subject. The servant standing seems to be dominated by Olympia as even if she is standing with flowers she seems hesitant in approaching her. Olympia was a prostitute and her having a servant indicates that she was ranking high in her occupation so she could afford a one. Olympia is shown to have a very independent attitude and a bold nature.
It makes me wonder if Olympia was so rich that she could afford a servant then why did she not change her occupation, is the lady her servant, or is it our assumption, maybe she could be a helper. Maybe she is the servant of the person who has sent her the flowers and yes because Olympia had such a bold personality, the lady seems dominated. Maybe she is the servant of the person who runs the practices of prostitution. Mostly in prostitution, there will be someone who will be managing everything but this is possible only if Olympia was not an independent prostitute.
There are many aspects of painting that we tend to assume if not specified by the painter. In the paintings of Manet, the viewer is made to think in different ways not only about the painting but also about the reality and what is happening at present. There are many things that are used for symbolizing, for example, a black cat in this painting and these can have pretty obvious meaning but there are other things in the painting that makes one wonder for example the servant.
The canvas is 51.4 x 74.8 inches, which is large for this style of painting. Most paintings that were this size depicted historical or mythological events, so the size of the work surprises the viewer. The painting seems to be breaking the conventional rules followed by most of the painters.
This painting makes me wonder, was Manet questioning the thought process of the society, was he questioning the practices of the society, or was he trying to make a statement or just making a piece of art.
Many of Manet's paintings may put the viewer into this thought as he has tried to make the viewer come in direct contact with the painting. It makes me wonder if Manet wants the viewer to think of what society has become or is it that he is showing just the reality and stating his viewpoint. Is Manet stating the classes the society has been divided into and how do all of them coexist.
