Skip to Content
Closed now, next open Thursday. Closed now, next open Thursday.

In the Wings

A work made of oil on canvas.
CC0 Public Domain Designation

Image actions

  • A work made of oil on canvas.

Date:

1899

Artist:

Jean Louis Forain
French, 1852-1931

About this artwork

In this backstage view of a Parisian opera house, ballerinas field advances from elegantly dressed male patrons, who approach them in pairs. The stoic dancer in the foreground, chin up and eyes downcast, absorbs the penetrating gaze of one large man while another looms just behind her, so close that his black top hat overlaps with her orange headdress. In 19th-century Paris, male abonnés (season ticket holders) had special access to a back room where they could socialize while watching the ballerinas warm up. Many took advantage of this privilege to sexually exploit the young dancers, who were well aware that their careers depended upon the good favor of this donor class.

Status

Currently Off View

Department

Painting and Sculpture of Europe

Artist

Jean Louis Forain

Title

In the Wings

Place

France (Artist's nationality:)

Date  Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

1899

Medium

Oil on canvas

Inscriptions

Inscribed upper right: Forain 1899

Dimensions

60.5 × 73.8 cm (23 3/16 × 29 1/16 in.)

Credit Line

Mr. and Mrs. Martin A. Ryerson Collection

Reference Number

1933.1118

IIIF Manifest  The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world.

Learn more.

https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/159770/manifest.json

Extended information about this artwork

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

Share

Sign up for our enewsletter to receive updates.

Learn more

Image actions

Share