A Bar at the Folies-Bergère by Édouard Manet from 1882 (currently at the Courtauld Gallery in London)

This is Manet’s last major work, and it was exhibited at the 1882 Paris Salon, after which he created only small pieces, a limit of his deteriorating health.

This scene is of the Folies-Bergère nightclub, one of the most elaborate variety shows in Paris, famous for its ballet shows, circus performances, and its barmaids. Here, the prominent figure is placed at the centre, standing in front of a mirror, reflected in it, the lively soirée is taking place.

The positioning of the two subjects presents a visual puzzle, a sort of contradicting tension. The barmaid looks directly at us, the viewer, yet her reflection opposes this angle as she is leaning towards the patron opposite her, as seen on the right. These unconventional compositional choices are what make the work so compelling.

By unsettling the spatial logic of the mirror and the viewer’s relationship to the scene, Manet turns an ordinary moment of nightlife into an exploration of modernity and spectatorship.