''At the Moulin Rouge'' (french: Au Moulin Rouge) is an

oil An oil is any nonpolar chemical substance that is composed primarily of hydrocarbons and is hydrophobic (does not mix with water) & lipophilic (mixes with other oils). Oils are usually flammable and surface active. Most oils are unsaturated ...

-on-

canvas Canvas is an extremely durable plain-woven fabric used for making sails, tents, marquees, backpacks, shelters, as a support for oil painting and for other items for which sturdiness is required, as well as in such fashion objects as handbags ...

painting by French artist

Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec Comte Henri Marie Raymond de Toulouse-Lautrec-Monfa (24 November 1864 – 9 September 1901) was a French painter, printmaker, draughtsman, caricaturist and illustrator whose immersion in the colourful and theatrical life of Paris in the ...

. It was painted between 1892 and 1895. Included in the background is a self-portrait of the artist in profile. It is one of a number of works by Toulouse-Lautrec depicting the

Moulin Rouge Moulin Rouge (, ; ) is a cabaret in Paris, on Boulevard de Clichy, at Place Blanche, the intersection of, and terminus of Rue Blanche. In 1889, the Moulin Rouge was co-founded by Charles Zidler and Joseph Oller, who also owned the Olympia (P ...

cabaret Cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music, song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, a casino, a hotel, a restaurant, or a nightclub with a stage for performances. The audience, often dining or d ...

built in Paris in 1889. The painting portrays near its center a group of three men and two women sitting around a table situated on the floor of the cabaret. From right to left, the people at the table include: writer

Édouard Dujardin Édouard Dujardin (10 November 1861 – 31 October 1949) was a French writer, one of the early users of the stream of consciousness literary technique, exemplified by his 1888 novel '' Les Lauriers sont coupés.'' Biography Édouard Émile Loui ...

, dancer La Macarona, photographer Paul Secau, photographer

Maurice Guibert Maurice Guibert (12 August 1856 – 13 January 1922) was a French photographer best known today as a friend of Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec. He was an agent for the champagne company Moët and Chandon and a member of the Société française de pho ...

, and, facing away,

Jane Avril Jane Avril (9 June 186817 January 1943) was a French can-can dancer made famous by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec through his paintings. Extremely thin, "given to jerky movements and sudden contortions", she was nicknamed ''La Mélinite'', after a ...

, being the focal point of the group - recognizable by her flaming red-orange hair. In the right foreground, apparently sitting at a different table, is a partial facial view of English dancer May Milton, with painted red lips, her face aglow in a distinctive greenish light and shadow. In the background standing on the right fixing her hair is Moulin Rouge dancer

La Goulue La Goulue (, meaning ''The Gourmand''), was the stage name of Louise Weber (12 July 1866 – 29 January 1929), a French can-can dancer who was a star of the Moulin Rouge, a popular cabaret in the Pigalle district of Paris, near Montmartre. Weber ...

and another woman. The center-left background shows the short-statured Toulouse-Lautrec himself, standing in front of and next to, Dr. Gabriel Tapié de Céleyran. ''At the Moulin Rouge'' is part of the

Helen Birch Bartlett Memorial Collection The Helen Birch Bartlett Memorial Collection is an art collection held by the Art Institute of Chicago.Art Institute of Chicago It is based on a collection assembled by Helen Louise Birch and her husband, Frederic Clay Bartlett. Birch and Bartlett ...

at the

Art Institute of Chicago The Art Institute of Chicago in Chicago's Grant Park, founded in 1879, is one of the oldest and largest art museums in the world. Recognized for its curatorial efforts and popularity among visitors, the museum hosts approximately 1.5 mill ...

, where it was first displayed on December 23, 1930. It was exhibited in London in 2011 at the

Courtauld Institute of Art The Courtauld Institute of Art (), commonly referred to as The Courtauld, is a self-governing college of the University of London specialising in the study of the history of art and conservation. It is among the most prestigious specialist coll ...

. Art critic Jonathan Jones calls the painting a masterpiece, and writes "the scene is somehow more exotic and more exciting than any recreation f_the_Moulin_Rouge,_or_Montmartre.html" ;"title="Montmartre.html" ;"title="f the Moulin Rouge, or Montmartre">f the Moulin Rouge, or Montmartre">Montmartre.html" ;"title="f the Moulin Rouge, or Montmartre">f the Moulin Rouge, or Montmartrein popular culture."

References

Paintings by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec Post-impressionist paintings 1892 paintings Paintings in the collection of the Art Institute of Chicago Works set in the Moulin Rouge Paintings set in cabarets Food and drink paintings Paintings of Montmartre {{19C-painting-stub