Starlight 

Emile Vernon painted ‘Starlight’ using oil on canvas sometime between the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It depicts a woman in classical garb. In France at the time, the institutions of art still prized academic painting which was rooted in both classical and Renaissance traditions. While the Impressionists and Post-Impressionists challenged this aesthetic, artists such as Vernon found a market for sentimental portraits and genre paintings that alluded to mythological subjects. The faint crescent moon on her garment is just one visual cue that signals this connection. The woman’s pose and dress are intended to evoke classical statuary, but with an added layer of titillation for a modern audience. To get a better understanding of this artwork and its place in French visual culture, it would be useful to examine exhibition records, art criticism, and the popular illustrated press of the time. By putting the artwork into its original social and institutional context, we can better understand its place in the history of art.