Before the Painting of M. Manet: "Why the devil is this fat woman in make-up and not much else called Olympia?" "But dear, maybe it's the black cat who's called that?" 1865

Editor: This is Honoré Daumier’s “Before the Painting of M. Manet: 'Why the devil is this fat woman in make-up and not much else called Olympia?' 'But dear, maybe it's the black cat who's called that?'" It looks like a snapshot of the reactions Manet’s *Olympia* provoked. What stands out to you? Curator: The image captures the shock and discomfort *Olympia* caused. Consider Daumier's use of caricature; it amplifies the bourgeois viewers' anxieties. The black cat, the defiant gaze—these were not symbols of idealized beauty. What do these choices tell us about the cultural memory of art? Editor: I see how Daumier uses symbols to hint at *Olympia*'s cultural impact. Thanks, that was a great insight!