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Innocence, Temptation And Power: A New Exhibit Of Women Depicted In Art

M.S. Rau Antiques

A collection of paintings depicting women in art is opening this weekend at M.S. Rau Antiques in the French Quarter. Eileen Fleming got a preview of the images ranging from a Norman Rockwell cover of a World War One ingénue to a Renaissance Madonna and Child.

The show is called “Innocence, Temptation and Power: The Evolution of Women in Art.” It brings together more than 40 works from the world’s great artists – like Picasso, Renoir and Rockwell.

Owner William Rau says it highlights one of his own great interests.

“I have a weakness for paintings of women," says Rau. "And so when I go out, if there’s two choices and one of them is a beautiful woman I tend to be much more likely to buy that. Part of the inspiration of the exhibition, which was trying to tell the story of women and their involvement, not only in art but by art, but also because we were capable with the collection that we’ve established — able to bring together.”

Co-curator Amanda Wallich:

Credit M.S. Rau Antiques
Excuse Me, by Norman Rockwell.

“We were excited to be able to include a lot of our works from multiple time periods to explore how the history of art changes through a single subject, and also within that to kind of explore a little bit the story of women and how their social history actually changed throughout these visual representations. So there are a few different layers going on in our entire narrative throughout the exhibition. It’s going to be a very rich narrative throughout. And hopefully we get to see a really exciting story unravel.”

It’s a story that’s been told over centuries through depictions of the Madonna and child. Rau is especially proud of a piece in the show that dates from the Renaissance.

“This is one of the first paintings ever done where the mother’s looking at Jesus as a mother looks as a son," he says.

Credit M.S. Rau Antiques
Madonna and Child - dal Ponte

Rau says it’s hard to pick a favorite in the exhibit – but he pointed out one that he calls exceptionally rare.

“It’s something that you cannot go out and find another one of – this is by Toulouse Lautrec….exceptionally rare.”

That’s one of the pieces in the exhibit that visitors can purchase — if that visitor wants to pay $2.45 million.

Two paintings by Norman Rockwell represent the art from mass markets available through the Saturday Evening Post — and a reflection of changing times for women.

Again, co-curator Amanda Wallich:

“You see a progression... a soldier here."

The other Rockwell, described by Rau, is a babysitter in distress.

“It shows a young girl... what to do.”

The exhibit is in the back upper floors of the sprawling Royal Street shop. It opens Friday and runs through Monday, May 4. It’s open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Saturday, and it’s free.

Eileen is a news reporter and producer for WWNO. She researches, reports and produces the local daily news items. Eileen relocated to New Orleans in 2008 after working as a writer and producer with the Associated Press in Washington, D.C. for seven years.