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Grab a drink with Manet's Bar at the Folies-Bergére! Actually, don't the museum probably wouldn't like it.
The Folies-Bergère is a world famous theater/night club where semi nude women have been performing since 1869. Josephine Baker became a sensation when she appeared at the Folies-Bergère dressed only in a skirt of fake bananas. Watch the performance here.
The painting is one of Manet's last major works, and was first owned by Manet’s neighbor Emmanuel Chabrier, a French composer who hung it quaintly over his piano. But it may be a little more scandalous than standard living room fare.
Manet's secret code: the dish of oranges means she's a prostitute. The model’s name is Suzon and she really worked at the Folies-Bergère. Perhaps as more than a barmaid. Did Manet have a crush?
The many cultural references include:
- A 1934 ballet choreographed by Ninette de Valois.
- A highly detailed recreation of the painting in a scene from the film The Private Affairs of Bel Ami (1947).
- A reimagined painting featuring a Black woman in the Eddie Murphy movie Coming to America (1988).
- The novel 13 Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson.
The address is 32 Rue Richer 75009 Paris France and they still put on shows.
In French it's Le Bar aux Folies-Bergère.
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Here is what Wikipedia says about A Bar at the Folies-Bergère
A Bar at the Folies-Bergère (French: Un bar aux Folies Bergère) is a painting by Édouard Manet, considered to be his last major work. It was painted in 1882 and exhibited at the Paris Salon of that year. It depicts a scene in the Folies Bergère nightclub in Paris. The painting originally belonged to the composer Emmanuel Chabrier, a close friend of Manet, and hung over his piano. It is now in the Courtauld Gallery in London.
Check out the full Wikipedia article about A Bar at the Folies-Bergère