Emile René Ménard - Odalisque - Oil On Canvas Mounted On Panel

Oil on panel
26.5 x 37 cm (30.6 x 40.6 cm with frame)

Born in 1862 to a painter father, René Joseph Ménard, the young Emile René became involved in the contemporary art scene at a very early age.

Corot and Millet introduced him to the world of painting; with the endorsement of Bouguereau and Baudry, Émile René enrolled at the Académie Julian in 1880.

Ménard did not break with his earlier masters; in his works, he preserved a spirit of harmony with nature, the source of gentleness and pleasure.

Dawn and dusk set the rhythm of his works; faint suns and orange skies envelop the feminine silhouettes that stand out in the distance.

As a Symbolist, Ménard does not embrace the dark, brooding mindset that is one of the hallmarks of the movement.

Our painting is the very embodiment of this serenity: in the foreground, reclining, a young woman modestly reveals herself in an idyllic landscape.

With small, vibrant brushstrokes, Ménard brings the entire painting to life and harmonizes it.

The sky and the waters illuminate her, while the groves, plunged into darkness, provide a stage curtain against which the young woman stands out. There is no voyeurism in this stolen moment of intimacy; Ménard conveys an image of tranquility and happiness, a view of “the joyful isle.”