Met Museum: Impressionism, Fashion and Modernity

This article was originally published on April 12, 2013

Critics such as Andrew Sarris always argued that the French made the best period films and left Hollywood far behind when recreating the look and fashions of the nineteenth century.  It's not surprising then, as one wanders through the exhibit Impressionism, Fashion and Modernity, now on display at the Met Museum, that one should be reminded of the lush scenario of a Max Ophuls film such as The Earrings of Madame de... 

Here at the Met, the period's changing fashions are meant to serve as a reflection of the vast social changes then affecting French society in the wake of the Franco–Prussian War.  As viewed through the eyes of the most famous Impressionist painters, close attention to costume became the means by which to depict the changed role of women in French society as well as the rise of the middle class.  As the museum's online Exhibition Notes state:

"At a time of great urban change, stale conventions had little appeal for a generation of artists and writers who sought to give expression to the pulse of contemporary life in all its nuanced richness. With the rise of the department store, the advent of ready-made clothing, and the proliferation of fashion magazines, those at the forefront of the avant-garde—from Manet, Claude Monet, and Auguste Renoir to Charles Baudelaire, Stéphane Mallarmé, and Émile Zola—turned a fresh eye to contemporary dress, embracing la mode as the harbinger of la modernité."

Whatever social commentary was intended by the Impressionists has, however, long ago been reduced to the picturesque.  Impressionist technique has become so widely accepted by the very bourgeois society it once criticized that it is now difficult for the viewer to see beyond the charm of paintings such as Renoir's Lady at the Piano in order to understand the artists' original intentions.  And so the exhibit becomes little more than a costume drama in its own right.

Two paintings that stand apart by virtue of their naturalism are both painted by Édouard Manet and, coincidentally, both feature a female model seated on a couch and holding a fan.  The first of these is a portrait of Baudelaire's long time mistress now sadly reduced by drugs and syphilis.  One can almost sense the madness lurking in the black depths of her eyes.  The other is Lady with Fans (Portrait of Nina de Callias) which is so strikingly modern one can imagine it as a portrait of a club goer in contemporary NYC. 

If the exhibit is not entirely successful in linking Impressionism and fashion to modernity, it still a rare opportunity to see so huge a number of nineteenth century masterpieces placed side by side.  Not only are all the Impressionist masters accounted for, but there are also works by lesser known artists such as the portraitist James Tissot who is represented by several paintings from his Women of Paris series. 

The exhibit would have benefited by the inclusion of media other than painting to make its point.  One feels a photographer such as Nadar would have had something to contribute to the argument.  In addition, influences such as Japonisme are referred to only in passing and do not receive their due for the influence they exerted on the French art and fashion of the period.

The exhibit continues through May 27, 2013.