Granada, 1827 -1890 · Academicism, history and feminine ideal

Eva stands near the serpent in a silent landscape: Contreras Munoz transforms the first biblical story into a study of the nude, choice and consciousness.

José Marcelo Contreras Munoz was born and died in Granada, from 1827 to 1890. He trained at the School of Fine Arts in his city and in the workshops of Francisco Enriquez and Agapito Lopez de San Român. From 1847, he continued his studies at the Academy of San Fernando in Madrid with Federico de Madrazo and Juan Antonio Ribera, then worked in Cordoba. His work is history and religious painting, with rigorous academic drawing. Éva, painted around 1865 -1870, is an oil on canvas measuring 88 × 69 cm. Eva, painted around 1865 -1870, is an oil on canvas measuring 88 × 69 cm. The female nude and the snake are enough to identify the biblical episode, but the scene avoids narrative overload. The female nude and the snake are enough to identify the biblical episode, but the scene avoids narrative overload. The female nude and the snake are enough to identify the biblical episode, but the scene avoids narrative overload. The female nude and the snake are enough to identify the biblical episode, but the scene avoids narrative overload. The idealized body, vegetation and animal construct one tension between innocence and knowledge. Acquired for the Prado in 1885, the work illustrates the way in which 19th century Spanish academicism combined anatomical study, moral subject and ideal beauty. The selection "José Marcelo Contreras Munoz" notably compares Éva. His reading favors figures.

Contreras reduces the story to the essential signs: a body, a look and the snake are enough to make us feel the moment when innocence becomes a decision.