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Manet's Bar at the Folies-Bergere (Getty Center Exhibitions)

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A Bar at the Folies-Bergère has generated much speculation and debate. Focusing on biographical, social, or art historical contexts, scholars have constructed elaborate interpretations based on repeated assumptions about the visual inconsistencies or outright "errors" of Manet's painted reflections. Taking a more technical approach, a few scholars have sought to resolve the painting's spatial and optical conundrums. One recent study, by Dr. Malcolm Park, shows that the picture conforms more truthfully than suspected to a one-point perspective view. The photographic reconstruction and diagram shown here illustrate that the scene can be understood as constructed from a viewpoint positioned to the right of the bar arrangement. Manet shows just a small section of the wider view encompassed from this position. This "offset" scheme accounts for the more conspicuous "errors" of Manet's painted reflections, showing them to be, in fact, subtly dissembled truths. In light of this account, the c

Manet's Bar at the Folies-Bergere (Getty Center Exhibitions) Home • Museum • Research Institute • Conservation Institute • Foundation • Trust Connect with Us • Visit • Shop Previous Manet's Bar at the Folies-Bergère : One Scholar's Perspective A Bar at the Folies-Bergère has generated much speculation and debate. Focusing on biographical, social, or art historical contexts, scholars have constructed elaborate interpretations based on repeated assumptions about the visual inconsistencies or outright "errors" of Manet's painted reflections. Tak

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