Henri Toulouse-Lautrec’s painting, Rue des Moulins: The Medical Inspection (1894), depicts a double portrait of two women in a brothel, shown with raw honesty and without attempts to save blushes. This artwork is part of a series featuring the Salon de la Rue des Moulins and is created in the same year as Toulouse-Lautrec’s famous work, At the Moulin Rouge.
The painting measures 83.5 x 61.4 cm and was created using oil on cardboard on wood in an Art Nouveau style with Post-Impressionist influences. The National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., houses this magnificent artwork and is open to visitors who can observe it up close.
Toulouse-Lautrec’s ability to capture emotion through his characters’ facial expressions and body language makes this work stand out. He portrays both women in the crude setting with skillful detail while also conveying their individual stories through his paint strokes. The viewer can imagine all that may have led these women to end up at such a place as depicted by their features.
Overall, Rue des Moulins: The Medical Inspection is not just an impressive example of portrait painting but also provides insight into society’s darker side during its time period – making it more than just skin-deep art from Henri Toulouse-Lautrec.
