New York, Odalisque, Horst P. Horst
Horst P. Horst
New York, Odalisque
DE
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Horst P. Horst

New York, Odalisque, 1943


Darstellung
25.4 x 20.7 cm
Physical Description
Silver Gelatin Print
Inventory Number
St.F.3356
Acquisition
Acquired in 2015 as a gift from Manfred Heiting
Status
Not on display

Texts

About the Work

The nude model seductively proffers her breast to the viewer, transforming herself into the epitome of the sensuous lady of pleasure. Even in the nineteenth century, erotic pictures such as this were popular subjects for painters like Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres and Eugène Delacroix, who took as their model for such works reclining nudes of the goddess of love, Venus. Even in those days, the odalisque was an exotic and therefore desirable figure onto whom men could project their fantasies. Horst P. Horst transferred the subject from the Orientalism of the nineteenth century into the twentieth for his extravagant pictorial creations. The soft, feminine curves of the woman contrast with the rigorous, geometric patterns of the tiles. While her face remains half-hidden in shadow, the shape of her body is clearly and succinctly worked out. The photographer lets the flesh tones of his model appear opalescent through the dramatic interplay of light and shadow.

Work Data

Basic Information

Title
New York, Odalisque
Photographer
Period Produced
School
Object Type
Physical Description
Silver Gelatin Print
Material
Technique
Label at the Time of Manufacture
Bezeichnet recto oben rechts in der Fotografie: Handschriftlich: 9JO - H - n (unleserlich)

Property and Acquisition

Institution
Departement
Collection
Creditline
Städel Museum, Frankfurt am Main
Picture Copyright
© Horst P. Horst, Permission Courtesy of Condé Nast, New York
Acquisition
Acquired in 2015 as a gift from Manfred Heiting

Work Content

Motifs and References

Genre
Main Motif
Associated Persons and Institutions
Associated Source
  • Vogue, Modezeitschrift

Iconclass

Primary
  • 41D92 woman (showing herself) undressed, quasi-nude
  • 31D15(+53) adult woman (+ sitting)
  • 31AA235 sitting figure - AA - female human figure
  • 41A7631 mattress
Secondary

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Last update

13.03.2024