Note on Art

Note on Art

A note from LeRoy Neiman on French Romanticist Anne-Louis Girodet de Roussy-Trioson.

This note from LeRoy Neiman details an artistic reference, specifically French Romanticist, Anne-Louis Girodet de Roussy-Trioson (6. 1767-1824). Girodet was a painter known for his narrative scenes and portraiture that broke with the then popular neoclassical form and often enfolded erotic elements; he is also remembered for painting many members of the Napoleonic family. Despite the brevity of this record, Neiman’s mention of “Bacchant”—most likely a work or allusion to a work by Girodet, featuring a "nude of Leopard skin"—can be seen as a dual denotation, referring not only to that of the erotic element in the French painter’s work but also Neiman’s own interest in the female form. Alongside drawing and painting an array of women—socialites, celebrities, among others—the artist also had recurrent illustration in Playboy magazine, beginning in 1955. This illustration, an addendum to the publication's “Party Jokes” column, featured a black-and-white nymph-like nude called "Femlin" (a merging of "female" and "gremlin"), typically engaging some sort of time-sensitive visual pun. The artist is most likely drawing a connection between Girodet’s “Bacchant” and this character. The note was most likely made in preparation for his memoir, All Told.

LeRoy Neiman

LeRoy Neiman Foundation

LeRoy Neiman Foundation

c. 1990-2011

LeRoy Neiman

Property of the LeRoy Neiman Foundation; please consult the organization's archivist for further details.

Notes

Image/jpeg

English

Document

LN_Notes_2298

New York (N.Y.) New York

Anne-Louis Girodet-Trioson
French 1767-1824
Bacchant nude of Leopard skin
Pencil-charcoal-stump

Permanent marker on paper.