Portrait of Laure (La négresse)

What separates the woman with whom I have spent most of my life or my closest friend from others whose paths have crossed mine for shorter or more scattered times...

~In late 1862, Édouard Manet (1832–1883) noted in his studio carnet that a model he described as “Laure, très belle négresse” (“Laure, very beautiful black woman”) sat for a portrait in his rue...

Despite the increasing internationalism of Western art in the last quarter of the nineteenth century—encouraged by the great international exhibitions—the differences...

~By the nineteenth century ‘the nude’ had loosened its connections with history painting and become a category in itself. Previously, whether playing out a role in a Christian or Pagan drama, the nude figure was either necessary to the narrative or played an allegorical role representing innocence or virtue...