Furthermore they both feature similar subject matters; women reclining. The Odalisque in Matisse’s painting reclines on a red chaise langue. The woman in Barnet’s work reclines in bed. These females also both feature in the titles of these works.
However Matisse’s woman seems more of an object rather than a subject of the painting. This is due to several features including; composition, the paint and the name of the painting itself. The composition of the painting is such that the focal point of the piece is the small coffee table. The woman seems pushed to the side as she is of less importance. The way the piece is painted also contributes to the objectification of the woman, the fact that she is wearing similar colours to that of the background and the foreground means she blends in.
The name of the piece hints that the woman is the subject matter however the term used and the description of her is very dismissive, ‘Odalisque in Red Trousers.’ An Odalisque is a female slave or concubine in a Turkish harem. Although by the eighteenth century the term odalisque referred to the eroticized artistic genre in which normally an eastern woman lied on her side and displayed for the spectator. The woman in Matisse’s work was not a concubine; it was most likely Henriette Darricarrière who frequently modeled for Matisse. The fact she is described as wearing red trousers in the title instead of what she is doing shows that she is in the painting purely for decorative purposes.
Therefore the woman in Matisse’s work is definitely not the subject of the painting Matisse is just trying to recreate the rich exotic scenes he saw in Morocco with brightly coloured richly patterned fabrics and oriental rugs and capture this on canvas.
Contrastingly the woman featured in Barnet’s piece is definitely the subject. Compositionally she is central and the main feature of the painting. Although it could be argued that the cat is the main focus of the work as it stares out of the picture creating eye contact with the viewer and it’s head is at the centre of the picture. However its ears point upwards towards the woman’s face and the book she is holding creates a frame making her the focal point of the piece. Additionally her obvious ownership of the cat contributes to her being the subject of the artwork. Furthermore this artwork is named after what she is doing, ‘Woman Reading,’ making it clear that she is the subject and the focus on what she is doing , holding a book, rather than what she is wearing.
Henri Matisse, Odalisque in Red Trousers, c.1924-1925, Oil on canvas, 50.0 x 61.0cm
Woman Reading by Will Barnet, 1965, Unknown size and media.
