Portait of Madeleine Flashcards
subject?
A young black woman seated on a chair in the Neoclassical style.
Body Language and pose?
Her body is angled towards the left but her head turns towards the viewer. Her
pose appears relaxed and passive with her arms placed loosely across her body.
Facial expression?
Her face is partially in shadow but the clear, confident gaze makes direct eye contact with the viewer.
Clothing?
The sitters hair is mostly covered by an intricately tied white cloth. One gold
hooped earring is visible. Her white robe has slipped from her shoulder to reveal
the right breast beneath which a red ribbon is tied.
Location/Setting?
A wealthy interior location is suggested by the ornate chair back. Other than
that, however, she is placed against an anonymous plain beige background
which has the effect of highlighting the figure.
Composition?
The woman is placed close to the picture plane and fills the visual space with
the lower part of her body cropped from view. The eyes of the sitter engage
directly with the viewer yet the girls’ arm, placed directly across the lower half
of the composition, creates a sense of separation between viewer and viewed.
Neoclassical style?
Seen in the crisp, clear outlines, raking light, invisible brushstrokes, classicising
costume.
Allegorical figure / Marianne?
Her exposed breast is not something a respectable woman would have been
shown with –suggesting that she is an allegorical figure (as seen in other
contemporary portraits of the time). Potentially represents Marianne the female
symbol of liberty during the French Revolution. Reinforced by the repetition of
white, blue and red in her clothing (a reference to the tricolour flag).
Identity of the sitter?
No name is given for the sitter although it is evident that the portrait is from life.
Recent scholarship has identified her first name is Madeleine. Likely brought to
France from Guadeloupe (a French colony) by Benoist’s brother-in-law. Probably
born a slave but freed by the decree of 1794.Unlikely to have had any say in
how she was portrayed.
Unusual subject?
Very few examples of 18th/19th c art that depict a black subject as the central
focus. Although Benoist’s intentions are unknown, the painting emphasises the
humanity of the sitter which contests 18th c stereotypes towards black people
(as seen in Hogarth’s Time of Day, Noon)
The Enlightenment?
Classical severity of the Neoclassical style reflects the moral climate of the Age of
Enlightenment–which looked back to the Republican values of Ancient
Rome.Enlightenment thinkers such as Rousseau and John Locke argued that
liberty was a human right and that reason and scientific knowledge—not the
state or the church—were responsible for human progress.
Enlightenment attitudes towards slavery?
Despite the emphasis on individual liberty, Enlightenment reason provided a
rationale for slavery, based on a hierarchy of races.
Abolition of Slavery?
Slavery had been abolished by the French government in 1794. However when
this painting was first displayed there was renewed debate about the importance
of colonial slavery in relation to the sugar trade and the French economy.
Benoist’s husband - supported a repeal of the 1794 ruling and in 1802 Napoleon
reinstated slavery in France’s overseas colonies.
Benoist?
Following this portrait, Benoist completed a number of commissions depicting
Napoleon and members of his family. She was awarded with a Gold Medal in the
Salon, received a government stipend, and opened her own atelier for the
training of women artists
Women artists in 19th century?
Enlightenment reason suggested that women were less equal to men – therefore
successful female artists were not common. The skills and training required to
work professionally were not available to them. Women were banned from life
drawing classes - a prerequisite of classical artistic training
