The power …
Tamara de Lempicka’s women in this 1923 painting have the powerful physiques of Michelangelo’s divine beings. In fact, this image of a woman in a post-coital sleep in her lover’s lap recalls the Mary and Jesus of his Pietà in St Peter’s in the Vatican.
Brand new heavies …
However, these are unequivocally modern dames. The backdrop is a cubist cityscape; their hair is cropped in the manner of Parisian garçons; and their red lips and shaded eyes are thoroughly à la mode. They also have a sexual agency wedded to bodily strength that is hard to imagine being lauded in a past age.
Bank on it …
Known for her affairs with both sexes, De Lempicka was a glamorous figure in Paris’s Left Bank scene, and forged a career with her good head for business. A magazine cover star who featured in the society pages, she created elegant art deco portraits for a wealthy elite.
My way …
As far as is known, though, this painting was not a commission nor a real couple, but a more personal vision of empowered female sexuality.
