Mickalene Thomas, Black Odalisque images
Thomas’s images show black women who are “beautiful, sexy and strong, set against a lush backdrop, which recalls a specific cultural moment in the 70s…She has created a kind of feminist baroque portrait in which the extreme use of lighting draws the viewer into the delight of worshiping at the altar of female beauty. Thomas’ work transcends any possible accusation of narcissism because she has so effectively considered the mood and tone of her paintings. They convey an ebullient sensibility rather than a self-serving eroticism. She has accomplished something wholly pleasurable and refreshing in her art, something which will be exciting to follow” -Anne Swartz
Mickalene Thomas offers us a reclamation of the exotifying Odalisque representations of women in exotic settings, particularly in regards to the Black female nude. It is widely documented that the Black female nude is absent from fine art, though the white female nude has been canonized in art and of "great concern both academically and aesthetically" (Wallace-Sanders). Thomas's usurp of the Odalisque as an image of promiscuity to represent the beautiful and strong Black woman is innovative, pleasing, and ethically ambiguous.















