La Prison Des Madelonnettes, Rue Des Fontaines 1810

Louis Léopold Boilly painted 'La Prison Des Madelonnettes, Rue Des Fontaines’ during a transformative time in French history. This oil on canvas depicts the courtyard of a women’s prison in Paris, not long after the French Revolution. Boilly invites us to consider the multiple layers of 18th-century French society. Positioned to the left, an upper-class family escorted by guards seems detached from the everyday life of the prison, where we see women gathered in the yard, seemingly unfazed by the privileged visitors. The Madelonnettes prison itself has a history rooted in the rehabilitation of sex workers. Originally a monastery, it was repurposed to house women deemed to be of "ill-repute," highlighting the complex interplay of social reform and moral judgment of the time. The imposing architecture reinforces the sense of confinement and the limited agency of the incarcerated women. Boilly’s painting asks us to reflect on the period’s shifting social norms and the treatment of women. How are we, as viewers, implicated in the everday politics of this space? What is seen and what remains unseen?