La verité 1900

Henri Fantin-Latour made this print, La Vérité, in nineteenth-century France, a period when the institutions of art, like the Académie des Beaux-Arts, were powerful forces in shaping artistic styles. Here we see a nude woman, presumably representing truth, gazing out at the viewer while holding a mirror. Truth here isn't simply exposed; she is actively showing herself, and her tools, to the public. Fantin-Latour was a key figure in the Realist movement, which challenged the academic conventions of idealization and historical painting. Instead, Realist artists sought to depict everyday life and contemporary subjects with unflinching honesty. Fantin-Latour lived at a time when the role of the artist was shifting. The rise of independent exhibitions and art criticism allowed artists to engage with the public directly, bypassing the traditional gatekeepers of the art world. To fully understand art like this, we can consult the archives of museums, galleries, and the writings of critics and artists from the time, giving us valuable insight into the world in which it was made.