A Bar at the Folies Bergère is Edouard Manet's last major work - unveiled at the Salon in 1882, a year before his death. The painter took as his model the young Suzon, whom he placed behind the bar. Manet's composition captures the modern character of the place by reflecting the lights on the beer bottles on the counter.
Both the scene and the composition are nonetheless riddled with discrepancies. The tangerines in the crystal jug are much more detailed and refined than Suzon's face, which is treated more roughly. The bottles are reflected on the wrong side of the counter and are all sealed or closed. The waitress seems to stand at a much more important distance from her reflection in contrast to the bowler-hatted customer in front of her.
Furthermore, If we compare the sketches to the finished work, we can see how Manet deviated from the original composition of the scene. In his preliminary work, unlike the finished work, Suzon crosses her arms, leans forward and tilts her body to the right. In addition, an X-ray examination revealed that Manet had reworked the composition several times, widening the gap between Suzon and her reflection a little more with each change.
For instance, her mirror reflection is more rounded and forward-leaning. But when viewed face on, Suzon is slimmer and stands upright. Her gaze is tinged with melancholy. Probably because waitresses in this kind of place sold drinks and incidentally their bodies. Suzon's jewellery is very similar to that of Olympia, a well known prostitute from the painting of the same name painted by Manet twenty years earlier.
Though, more humble than Olympia, her neckline is covered with flowers. Her wrists are folded over the edge of the counter in a posture of expectation. Yet this pose was often used in the 19th century to represent the Virgin and the Immaculate Conception. Is Manet portraying a contemporary society or perhaps a religious allegory?
Nathan
1. Édouard Manet, A Bar at the Folies-Bergère, 1882, oil on canvas, 96x130 cm, Courtauld Gallery, London.
Karen Serres, La Collection Courtauld : Le Parti de l'Impressionnisme, Paul Holberton, 2019
https://www.beauxarts.com/grand-format/mirage-mon-beau-mirage/#&gid=1&pid=3