Art: The Woman behind the Curtain, La Grande Odalisque by Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres

            A man walks into a dim, candlelit room. He hears the gentle strumming and picking of an Oud guitar. Exotic scents fill the air: sandalwood, frankincense and red myrrh. He sees beautifully designed blue, satin curtains hanging from the ceiling. He approaches the curtain and pulls them back to find a nude woman lying on a divan. Her back is turned to him as she slowly fans herself with an array of peacock feathers – the feathers caressing her pearly skin with every downward movement. Silk blankets of gold and white are bunched up underneath her, and a jeweled belt lays on the edge of the velvet sofa. She notices the man, and turns her head towards him; her eyes are distant and her face is void of expression. She solely exists for his pleasure. She is La Grande Odalisque, created in 1814 by French artist Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres.

            During the 19^th century a wave of travel and adventure spread throughout France, more and more people had begun traveling to the exotic lands of India, Egypt and the Orient. There was great interest in the harem’s of the Far East. It was a popular topic among artists and novels. “Ingres' porcelain sexuality is made acceptable even to an increasingly prudish French culture because of the subject's geographic distance” (Hariss). Harems were, and have been described as centers of exotic pleasure, power, luxury, and wealth.  It is widely known that Ingres had never actually visited a Harem, so this was an imagined scene and there is very little truth to it. As Dr. Beth Harris notes in a video about La Grande Odalisque made for Khan Academy, this painting was a “French fantasy”. La Grande Odalisque was the segway out of the Neoclassical period and into Romanticism; it highlights a longing for eroticism, power and the feminine ideal.

            La Grande Odalisque, oil on canvas, was originally commissioned by Caroline Murat, the sister of Napoleon Bonaparte, however it never actually came into her possession and instead was displayed at the Paris Salon and is now housed in the Musée du Louvre. Ingres was mentored under Neoclassist master, Jacque-Louis David (one of my personal favorites) – this is where he discovered his love for painting the female nude and how to perfectly shade every curve and angle of a woman’s body. Although there are mannerist characteristics seen throughout the composition (an exaggerated elongation of the body and twisting limbs), mannerism tended to be more religious in nature and seen more often in high renaissance pieces. 

For example, Ingres exaggerated the length of the Odalisque’s back, and shaped her pelvis much larger that would be considered normal or humanly possible. Her right arm is much longer than the left and her leg twists and contorts in an unnatural and uncomfortable position. Ingres is placing emphasis on these parts of the women to stress her sensuality (Harris, Zucker, Romanticism).

  He highlighted the parts of women he found beautiful by using an almost stylistic approach to bring these areas to the foreground. It seems to work. Although we note that this woman’s body is not shaped properly, we do not see her as being deformed. Instead we are transported into her exotic world.  Her sensuality outweighs her disproportion.

            Ingres was able to achieve the standard Neoclassical style of painting an image that looked so realistic, it almost looked alive, but using short and tight brushstrokes. This is seen in her pearly white skin, the silk sheets, and the velvet curtains. Under the mentorship of Jacque-Louis David, Ingres adopted David’s use of color and contrast. The Odalisque’s neutral and warm skin color is in stark contrast to the cold blue sheets and curtains. The odalisque is the brightest and most detailed image in this composition, light reflects off her skin as if she is sitting directly in front of a window. The darkness of the negative space behind her also allow the colors in the foreground of the image to become more vibrant and lively. The lack of illusionary depth allows focus to remain on the woman (Grande Odalisque).  Ingres has formed her with long, curving lines, her figure takes up the majority of the frame. We see nothing beyond her body. All the items are within her reach. This seems to suggest that nothing exists in the odalisque’s world except to please the man who is now standing before her; whether it be the imagined man in the painting - or the physical man viewing the painting.

            Painting female nudes was Ingres favorite subject. When painting La Grande Odalisque, Ingres once stated that he could not stop himself elongating the back. He stated that he found the female back the most sensual part of her body and it is a theme that is consistent throughout other works of his. Ingres capitalized on drawing symbolically sensual images such as: the smoky incense filling the air, the hookah, velvet, silk and fur. Together in a composition, these become sexually charged items. Even her limbs were stylized to focus on the sensual aspects of a woman’s body. By doing this, Ingres broke away from the Neoclassicism and became the forerunner for Romanticism. Ingres achieved a “perfect balance between platonic desire of ideal beauty and that of physical carnality – or the mortal beauty of a woman’s body” (Navarro).

            With La Grande Odalisque, Ingres expressed a societal yearning for the “feminine ideal”. France was quickly changing. Women were becoming more outspoken, independent and demanding certain rights. Men were attracted to the idea of these submissive concubines in the Far East that gave in to every whim of their masters. They existed solely to provide sexual pleasure to their master, sultan or king. This idea was highly erotic to the men of France, thus, we are presented with the woman behind the curtain. 

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"Grande Odalisque, J.A.D. Ingres: Analysis, Interpretation.” Analysis of Orientalist Painting of Female Nude. Web. 27 July 2016.

Harris, Beth, Zucker, Stephen. Romanticism: France. Smart History. Khan Academy. Web. 26 July 2016.

Harris, Beth, Zucker, Stephen. “Painting colonial culture: Ingres's La Grand Odalisque”. Khan Academy. Web. 27 July 2016.

Jopp, Alexandra. "Romantic Orientalism: The Harem." Web log post. Best American Art. 27 Nov. 2010. Web. 25 July 2016.

“La Grande Odalisque." Artble. Web. 27 July 2016.

Navarro, Carlos G. "La Gran Odalisca De Ingres, Comentada Por Carlos G. Navarro." YouTube. Museo Del Prado, 19 Nov. 2015. Web. 27 July 2016.  

Zygmont, Bryan. “Between Neoclassicism and Romanticism: Ingres, La Grande Odalisque”. Khan Academy. Web. 27 July 2016.