Manet's (1832-1883) Olympia, oil on canvas, 1863-1865, created a scandal when it was first exhibited at the 1865 Paris Salon. Olympia's confrontational gaze caused astonishment when the painting was first exhibited because a number of details in the work identified her as a prostitute. The painting signaled a significant departure from the traditional academic style of painting still popular at the time, which romanticized and dramatized subjects, treating them differently than Manet's common, matter-of-fact representation. Nevertheless, the painting has since become an icon of French 19th century art; the French government acquired the painting in 1890 after a public subscription organized by the Impressionist artist Claude Monet; it is now on display at the Musée d'Orsay, Paris.
This etching of Olympia was made by Manet to be included in the pamphlet written by Émile Zola to accompany Manet's Avenue de l'Alma exhibition of 1867. Zola praised Manet's realism, noting, "When our artists give us Venuses, they correct nature, they lie. Édouard Manet asked himself why lie, why not tell the truth; he introduced us to Olympia, this fille of our time, whom you meet on the sidewalks."
