Lecture Notes: Manet's "Bar at the Folies-Bergère"

Introduction

• Location: Courtauld Galleries
• Subject: Manet's painting "Bar at the Folies-Bergère"
• Setting:
  • Takes place in a café concert, a bar with entertainment.
  • Entertainment has a circus-like element (e.g., acrobat visible in top-left corner).
  • Represents middle-class entertainment with a gritty undertone.

Initial Observations

• Painting appears straightforward at first, with a woman behind a bar.
• Closer inspection reveals it’s a reflection in a mirror.
  • Evidence: Gold frame of the mirror.

Manet's Artistic Intentions

• Manet challenges the traditional view of a canvas as a true reflection of the world.
• Similarities to other works by Manet:
  • Forte gazes, unreadable expressions (compared to "Olympia").
• Manet's interest in the human figure within modern life.

Artistic Techniques and Comparisons

• Open brushwork and chandelier detail reminiscent of Renoir's style.
• Incorporation of reflection and distortion:
  • Woman’s reflection suggests interaction with a male patron in a top hat (possibly viewer).
  • Viewer’s perspective is intentionally distorted.
  • Sketches show deliberate transformations from initial ideas.

Context and Cultural Implications

• Displayed at the Salon of 1882:
  • Challenged viewers' expectations of reading and understanding paintings.
• Reflection of modernity within a newly reconstructed Paris:
  • Different social classes interacting.
  • Challenges in categorizing people, especially women.

Symbolism and Viewer Interaction

• Woman at the bar suggests sexual availability.
• Viewer assumes the role of a patron, questioning the woman’s intentions:
  • Distance vs. closeness emphasized through physical symbolism.
  • Marble bar as a barrier, yet reflection suggests otherwise.
• Details such as bottles, fruit, and glass add sensuality and contrast.

Artistic Details and Techniques

• Manet's virtuosity displayed in:
  • The woman’s expression: sad eyes vs. sneering mouth.
  • Composition changes from initial sketches: body posture and hand placement.
• Elements of the painting:
  • Blossoms, cut glass, fruit depicted with sensual detail.
• Reinforcement of painting’s flatness and denial of reality illusion:
  • Use of blacks, grays, browns, beiges in reflections.
  • Metaphor for Paris’s dynamic, modern energy.

Conclusion

• Manet’s work embodies complexity and modernity through sophisticated use of reflections and social commentary.