‘Arrangement in Gray: Portrait of the Painter’ by James Abbott Whistler, a self portrait, c. 1872, Detroit Institute of Arts
The Origin of the World
A lover of women, Courbet liked to glorify the female nude in paintings of stunning warmth and sensuality. L’Origine du monde, is one of the most provocative and intimate depictions of the female nude in the history of Western art. The canvas was completed in 1866 and presents a close-up view of the genitals and abdomen of a naked woman, as she lies on a bed with her legs open. The framing of the nude body, with head, arms and lower legs outside of our view, emphasises the eroticism of the painting, with an unprecedented detailed view of the model’s vagina.
During the nineteenth century, the display of the nude body underwent a revolution, chiefly inspired by the works of Courbet and Manet. The former rejected academic painting and its smooth, idealised nudes, preferring instead the more everyday depictions of real women in everyday life — not romanticised tales of fantasy. Courbet was appalled by the hypocritical social conventions of the Second Empire, where eroticism and even pornography were acceptable in mythological works. Courbet insisted he never lied in his paintings and his pioneering realism pushed the limits of what was considered presentable. Even today, the graphic nudity of L’Origine du monde, with its close picture plane to the viewer, still has the power to shock and trigger censorship.
For years art historians have speculated upon the identity of model, with many suggesting his favourite model, Joanna Hiffernan, whose lover at the time was Whistler. She was the subject of a series of four portraits by Courbet entitled La belle Irlandaise (Portrait of Jo) painted in 1865-66. The possibility that she was having an affair with Courbet might explain his subsequent bitter falling out with Whistler a short while later. Although Hiffernan had noticeable red hair, contrasting with the darker pubic hair of L’Origine du monde, the attribution of Hiffernan as the model continues to be considered. In February 2013, the Courbet expert Jean-Jacques Fernier authenticated a painting of a young woman’s head and shoulders as the upper section of L’Origine du monde, which according to some was severed from the canvas. Fernier went on to announce that due to the conclusions reached after two years of analysis, the head will be added to the next edition of the Courbet catalogue raisonné. However, the Musée d’Orsay, where the painting is held, have indicated that L’Origine du monde was not part of a larger work.
Other documentary evidence links the painting with Constance Quéniaux, a former dancer at the Paris Opera and a mistress of the Ottoman diplomat Halil Şerif Pasha, who commissioned this painting as well as the previous featured plate. According to the historian Claude Schopp and the head of the French National Library’s prints department, Sylvie Aubenas, the evidence is found in correspondence between Alexandre Dumas fils and George Sand.
Halil Şerif Pasha is believed to have commissioned the work shortly after he moved to Paris, after being introduced to Courbet by Charles Augustin Sainte-Beuve. Pasha ordered a painting to add to his personal collection of erotic pictures, which already included The Turkish Bath and The Sleepers. After Pasha’s finances were ruined by gambling, the painting passed through a series of private collections. It was first bought at the sale of the Pasha collection in 1868, by the dealer Antoine de la Narde. Edmond de Goncourt then discovered it in an antique shop in 1889, hidden behind a wooden pane decorated with the painting of a castle in a snowy landscape. According to Robert Fernier, who published two volumes of the Courbet catalogue raisonné and founded the Musée Courbet, the Hungarian collector Baron Ferenc Hatvany bought the canvas at the Bernheim-Jeune gallery in 1910 and took it with him to Budapest. Towards the end of the Second World War, it was looted by Soviet troops, but later ransomed by Hatvany. When Hatvany left Hungary, during the Communist takeover of 1947, he was permitted to take only one art work with him to Paris and he chose L’Origine du monde.
In 1955 the painting was sold at auction for 1.5 million francs to its new owner the psychoanalyst Jacques Lacan. He and his wife, actress Sylvia Bataille, installed it in their country house in Guitrancourt. Lacan asked the artist André Masson, his stepbrother, to build a double bottom frame and to draw another picture to accompany it — a surrealist, allusive version of the original work.
The explicit nature of the painting has served as an inspiration to numerous artists. A satirical twist was provided by Marcel Duchamp’s last major work, Étant donnés, which also features the image of a woman lying on her back with her legs spread. In 1989, the French artist Orlan created the cibachrome L’origine de la guerre (The Origin of War), a male version of the original, showing a penile erection. Brazilian artist Vik Muniz went on to produce two versions of the painting. The first is a photograph made of dust and dirt, which plays with the common moralist association between female genitalia and filth. In the second, the painting is constructed from an assemblage of journal clippings reminiscent of anatomic and artistic procedures.
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Some art historians argue that this painting is the long-lost top section to ‘L’Origine du monde’.
Halil Şerif Pasha (1831-1879), the Ottoman-Egyptian diplomat and art collector, who commissioned the controversial canvas
Constance Quéniaux, possible model for ‘L’Origine du monde’
The Wave
In the summer of 1869, Courbet stayed at Étretat, the small Norman town where Delacroix, Boudin and Jongkind had also spent time painting the sea. The area was conducive for the painting of fine seascapes, due to its resplendent chalk cliffs, subtle light and variations of fierce storms and calm waves. The area was also favourable to artists due to its rapid changing skies. No doubt, disillusioned by his heavy social demands of Paris and his increasing dependency on alcohol, the escape to the secluded Norman coast offered a welcome respite to the artist. During his time at Étretat, he produced a large series of fascinating seascapes, portraying many temporal varieties of coastal scenes that the area was renowned for.
The French short story writer Guy de Maupassant recounted a visit he made to Courbet during his stay at Étretat, explaining how he discovered “in an enormous, empty room, a fat, filthy, greasy man, who was slapping white paint on a blank canvas with a kitchen knife. Now and then he would press his face against the window and peer out at the storm. The sea came so close that it seemed to pound the house and completely cover it in its foam and roar… On his mantelpiece there was a bottle of cider beside a half-filled glass. From time to time, Courbet would take a few swigs before returning to his work.” The result of this isolated work would become some of the artist’s most celebrated creations of his later period.
In the following plate, just one example from the series, simply tilted The Wave (1870), Courbet depicts an intense vision of the tempestuous sea and glowering skyline. We can detect the artist’s fascination with the theme of the unquestionable power of nature and the vulnerability of man. Courbet liked to apply thick paint with a kitchen knife, conveying unusual effects in his workmanship, capturing the unchecked fury of the sea. The canvas, which is housed in the Museum of Fine Arts of Lyon, is composed of three horizontal bands: the shore, the sea and the sky, which dominates the composition, towering over the flimsy boats in the distance. These vessels represent man and his perilous existence, held at the mercy of the escalating storm. The shore appears in the bottom left corner as a narrowing diagonal, giving the impression that we are being swept out to sea as we observe the spectacle.
Unlike his paintings of ordinary life in the town and city, which often employ a flat plane with a limited sense of depth, this series of seascapes demonstrates an accomplished use of perspective. Courbet conveys space through the narrow band of light beneath the clouds and the top of the sea, which in turn allows a glimpse of the distant boats. Furthermore, the artist’s use of modelled forms, producing actual three-dimensional sh
apes, indicates a new development in his art. With his knife and other tools, he favours short and strong strokes, while building thick layers of paint to replicate the tumultuous waves and clouds projecting out into our space.
The series of wave paintings completed at Étretat were certainly not plein air works, being much larger in size and demanding more time in a studio than available at a single sitting in situ. However, the canvases caused a sensation and caught the imagination of the art world due to the sheer power of nature they conveyed, opening the way for Impressionism, which in the later years of the century would continue to explore the possibilities of reproducing colour and light as reflections, rather than as strict linear forms. Once again a pioneer, Courbet would go on to win the admiration of a new school of art. When viewing the wave paintings of Étretat, Paul Cézanne declared: “Courbet’s tide comes from the depth of ages”.
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Another painting from ‘The Waves’ series, Philadelphia Museum of Art, 1869
‘The Stormy Sea’, Musée d’Orsay, Paris, 1870
The Étretat Cliffs after the Storm
Étretat had attracted numerous painters to its coasts from the early nineteenth century, having earned the reputation of having reviving air and a certain quality of light. During his time in the area in the summer of 1869, Courbet stayed in a house by the sea, which was sheltered against the cliff on the left of the bay. He would paint varying scenes of Falaise d’Aval many times during his sojourn in the Normandy town. The following canvas, The Étretat Cliffs after the Storm, is one of the artist’s most notable paintings during this productive phase of his career.
The locality is famous for its characteristic formations of natural archways, produced in the high rocks by centuries of water and wind. The canvas presents a view of the arched escarpment known as Porte d’Aval, replicated with broad and daring brushstrokes. Great attention has been paid to the intricate formation of the cliffs and rocks, giving the natural formation the appearance of a grand architectural structure. Arranged as a complex structure of vertical clusters of rock and mossy growth, it evokes the impression of an ancient ruin. Located today in Musée d’Orsay, the painting is a pure, uncomplicated landscape, with no sight of people, allowing our attention instead to focus upon the balance of land, rock, sea and sky. It exudes a magisterial quality, conveyed through the transparent treatment of light, emanating from the sky, which is dominated by intricate cloud patterns. Courbet captures the bracing clarity of air, applying thinned and delicate colour tones to represent the rejuvenated light following a storm. This attention to temporal effects communicates to us the cleaning power of nature.
Courbet’s close friend, the art critic Castagnary, who was a staunch advocate of Realist art, lavished great praise on the canvas when it was first exhibited at the Salon of 1870. In particular, he admired, “the free, joyous air which circulates in the canvas and envelops the details.” The painting won great acclaim at the exhibition and helped consolidate Courbet’s reputation as one of the leading figures of art. In later years the Impressionists revered Courbet’s use of light and freedom, unprecedented for its time. Monet himself would visit the area and produce his own series of paintings, partly inspired by Courbet’s work at Étretat.
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The cliffs at Étretat
‘The Cliffs at Étretat’ by Claude Monet, Clark Art Institute, 1885
Courbet at the height of his career
Self Portrait at Sainte-Pélagie
His reputation established as an artist of wealth and fame, having recently produced some of his greatest work at Étretat, Courbet’s artistic career was now about to take a downward turn. Plagued by rheumatism and his worsening addiction to alcohol, he struggled to continue working unimpeded. Nonetheless, he was still capable of making a typically bold and defiant gesture. In June 1870, he was offered the Legion of Honour, the highest French order of merit for military and civil merits, originally established by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1802. He rejected this on the grounds that “art did not require the official approval of the State”. This provocative decision would indirectly lead to the artist’s imprisonment and eventual exile from his home country.
That year the Franco-German War broke out, as the Second Empire collapsed and the Third Republic was proclaimed. This war involved a coalition of German states led by Prussia, which went on to defeat France a few weeks later. The conflict marked the end of French hegemony in continental Europe and resulted in the creation of a unified Germany. On 18 March 1871, the republican Paris Commune was established to fight the Germans in France and to oppose the Army of Versailles. Courbet had been named the newly elected president of the artists’ federation and so was placed in charge of reopening the museums and organising the annual Salon. The artist took an active part in the revolutionary activities of the Commune. Instead of opening the museums, he opted to protect the major public monuments, especially the Sèvres porcelain factory and the palace at Fontainebleau, at a time when Paris had been under constant bombardment by the Germans. Alarmed by the excesses of the Commune, he announced his resignation on 2 May 1871.
The Commune had voted to destroy a column in the Place Vendôme, which commemorated the Grand Army of Napoleon Bonaparte, and the decision was executed on 16 May. However, twelve days later the Commune was crushed by the Army of Versailles, and a high-profile scapegoat for the sacrilegious act was suddenly required by the new regime. On 7 June Courbet was arrested at the home of a friend, due to an unfounded belief that he had been responsible for the demolition of the column. He was swiftly brought before a military court, largely due to his well-known censure of the military establishment, and he was charged with having been the instigator, though he had had no hand in the act. Courbet the proclaimed rebel was the perfect scapegoat, despite his loud protests, whilst the actual perpetrators had escaped to England. He was sentenced to six months in prison and given a large fine.
The artist served his sentence first at the Sainte-Pélagie prison, but after becoming seriously ill, he was moved to a clinic just outside of Paris. During his incarceration, the general feeling aimed towards the Communards was so bitter that they were not treated as political prisoners, but as common criminals. Courbet was confined to a dark cell and given menial prison clothing. He was forbidden to paint and so the following canvas could not have been produced prior to early 1872, during his time at the clinic.
Self Portrait at Sainte-Pélagie presents the artist in the cell of his Paris prison, seated on a table, close to a half-open window, obstructed by the heavy prison bars. He is simply dressed, wearing a chestnut suit and a beret, as the red neck scarf – symbolising his stubborn hold of radical principals — provides the only vibrant colour of the dark-toned composition. Once more, he holds his humble artist’s pipe, while he stares out towards the prison yard, suggesting a desire for freedom. Even the trees glimpsed out of the window appear weak and dreary, heightening his suffering. The canvas is heavily imbued with a tone of nostalgia and despondency, subtly capturing the artist’s final wretched months in France.
Although by the time he had left the prison, Courbet was reported to have had grey hair and to have been feeble, he appears much healthier and stronger in the self portrait, with a black beard and upright posture. He could have chosen to portray the gritty and cruel conditions of the cell, but instead he encourages us to contemplate his own heroic nature. The light flooding in from the window to the right allows us to do this, bringing much clarity to an otherwise dull painting. We are presented with image of the undeterred rebel that has defied the government and proudly succeeded in overcoming the horror of his imprisonment.
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Courbet by Nadar, shortly before his imprisonment
The Sainte-Pélagie prison in 1898; it was destroyed in May 1899.
A barricade on Rue Voltaire, after its capture by the regular army during the Bloody Week
Destruction of the Vendôme Colonne during the Paris Commune. Courbet was photographed (as circled above) with the instigators of the column’s destruction, which played an important part in his subsequent imprisonment.
The Vendôme Column today — in 1874, the column was re-erected at the centre of Place Vendôme with a copy of the original statue on the top.
Still Life of Apples, Pears and Primroses on a Table
Courbet’s confinement did nothing to alleviate his worsening health and struggles with alcoholism, which had developed into liver disease. Once set free, he hurried to Ornans, hoping to regain his much depleted strength. The government had not finished with their persecution of the rebel artist — no doubt remembering his slighting of their previous offer of the Legion of Honour. Courbet was ordered in 1873 to pay for the full reconstruction the Place Vendôme column. The sum came to an enormous 323,000 francs, in yearly instalments of 10,000 francs. Unable to pay, the artist defied the judgement. In July 1873 he left his homeland for Switzerland; he would never return. His entire personal property and all his paintings were seized and he was fined 500,000 gold francs.
Delphi Complete Paintings of Gustave Courbet Page 4