A close-up of the Parisian brothels of the 19th century...
9:41 p.m.
If we think of Toulouse-Lautrec (1864-1901), the first thing that comes to mind is himself, sitting at a cabaret, depicting the dancers and workers of those Parisian brothels.
Away of that legendary image, the Grand Palais is presenting the exhibition Toulouse-Lautrec: Résolument Moderne, focusing on the expressive realism of his drawings, and their connection to photography and Impressionism.
Thus we get to see a different Toulouse-Lautrec as that of the art books and posters (even though his dancers are also part of this exhibition). The first gallery displays the 15 portraits that survived of Carmen, Jeanne and Suzanne, three women from the lower social classes of the time. Carmen Gaudin is the one we see the most, maybe because of the attractiveness and color of her hair. Their poses and the perspective from which Toulouse-Lautrec painted them, indicate an apparent connection with photography.
A la Bastille (Jeanne Wenz), by Toulouse Lautrec (1888)
Technique: oil on canvas
Portrait de Jeanne Wenz, by Toulouse Lautrec (1886)
Technique: oil on canvas
Carmen Gaudin, by Toulouse Lautrec (1885)
Technique: oil on wood
The text in the room explains that, at age 17, the artist declared that one should only paint what was real, and not what was ideal, and this principle ruled over his entire artistic life. By the end of the 1880s, willing to overcome the bases of Impressionism and apply movement to his paintings, he finds in the circus the perfect scenario to produce artworks with cinematographic excellence.
Au cirque Fernando: écuyère, by Toulouse Lautrec (1887-1888)
Technique: oil on canvas
However, his most distinguished works are those depicting Paris' night life, with its mixture of social classes, the eccentricity of human behavior and the revelation of the real struggles of cabaret dancers. These nuances gave Toulouse-Lautrec enough material to produce his dramatic shapes. But, among all these women, there's always one solitary masculine figure, that of the dandy, and this is precisely what calls our attention during the exhibition. We can only distinguish two characters: the low life woman and the man in the top hat, showing off the power given by money.
Monsieur Fourcade, de Toulouse Lautrec (1889)
Technique: oil on cardboard
Au Salon de la rue des Moulins, by Toulouse Lautrec (1894)
Technique: oil on canvas
Femme qui tire son bas, by Toulouse Lautrec (1894)
Technique: oil on cardboard
The exhibition ends with a film and a text explaining that, due to excessive consumption of alcohol and an advanced syphilis, his parents take him to a hospital in Neuilly. He is only allowed to carry his circus drawings, so he went on working on that subject, but never with the skill and energy of his previous productions.
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