Alexandre Cabanel, Albaydé (1848)

Albaydé by Alexandre Cabanel is at the heart of academic excellence because of its clean finish, sharp lines, and sober colour scheme. In fact, Cabanel, who was born in Montpellier and won the Prix de Rome in 1845, was one of the last true academicians. He was determined to keep the Académie's rules and hierarchy in place, even though radical critics like Gustave Courbet were challenging it in a big way. The idea comes from Victor Hugo's Orientalist poem "Fragments of a Serpent," in which the poet wants "the lovely doe-like eyes of Albaydé." The lazy figure of Albaydé was painted by Cabanel in a way that resembles Ingres's languid nudes. The painting is both a visual pleasure and a metaphor. Albaydé was made as part of a triptych whose theme was how dangerous it is to move from childhood to adulthood. Albaydé was a young girl who had lost her innocence. It's interesting that she's shown as a seductive, if messy, Oriental courtesan in a room that looks like a mix of an Islamic lounge, a harem, and an opium den.

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