#olymipa

A walk through Olympia

My Fridays are so thrilling; I am sat, bored out of my mind, writing notes on Renaissance artists that I hate to get my grade up to an A. So I thought I'd share a little of my knowledge. It's thrilling. "My study begins with artist Edouard Manet (1832-1883), and a piece that outlines his style perfectly; Olympia, a painting of a prostitute, was a controversial piece at the time. The subject’s nakedness, combined with the adornment of various ornaments, such as neckwear and mules, showed the woman’s sexuality, and her eroticisms. The actual figure of the woman is reminiscent of the early images seen of Venus in mythology, the body being curvaceous, but not large, and pale with golden-red hair. The way that Manet has painted her is extremely realistic; the style is now looked back on as realism, with photorealistic qualities. The soft colours and shapes accentuate the woman’s vulnerability, and also her beauty. The composition of the piece - placing her to the fore side of the image - places all focus on her, and it is only with a second look that we see the black servant in the background." (C) Anna Kalyta-Spawton 2011