Splendour and Misery. Pictures of Prostitution, 1850-1910


Jean Béraud, L’Attente
"The first major show on the subject of prostitution, this exhibition attempts to retrace the way French and foreign artists, fascinated by the people and places involved in prostitution, have constantly sought to find new pictorial resources for depicting the realities and fantasies it implied. From Manet's Olympia to Degas's Absinthe, from Toulouse-Lautrec and Munch's forays into brothels to the bold figures of Vlaminck, Van Dongen or Picasso, the exhibition focuses on showing the central place held by this shady world in the development of modern painting. The topic is also covered with regard to its social and cultural dimensions through Salon painting, sculpture, decorative arts décoratifs and photography. A wealth of documentary material recalls the ambivalent status of prostitutes, from the splendour of the demi-mondaine to the misery of the pierreuse (street walker). ..."
Musée d'Orsay
Musée d'Orsay: For a detailed presentation
NY Times - ‘Splendor and Misery: Images of Prostitution,’ Captures a Profession in Paris Through Artists’ Eyes
VOGUE: An Enthralling New Show at the Musée d’Orsay Explores Prostitution in France
Guardian - Cocottes, courtesans and sex in the city: Paris celebrates art of the demi-monde
ArtNews
euronews: Sex in the city at Paris’ Musée d’Orsay (Video)

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