ENCW 205: Art & Identity in New Orleans

With the constant observation of both male guests and the direction of Countess P, Ophelia becomes less of a person and more of an art piece during her time at the brothel. Countess P instructs the girls to sit still and quietly, stretched out in poses that highlight their figures. Patrons of the brothel can look upon each woman and then pick one to service them for the evening. In the letter from February 1911, Ophelia describes how some men only want to gaze upon her, while her face is turned away from them and they touch themselves. These men do not want to see her face or look into her eyes. They don’t want to see her as a person. They want her to be a beautiful object for which they can gain pleasure from.
Ophelia and the other women working at the brothel also are watched and made spectacles of due to their mixed-race heritage. They are known as octoroons because they have white skin. In August 1911, Ophelia describes the way the patrons of the brothel study them (26). The men survey at them, trying to find indicators of their African American heritage. These men move in close, staring them down while looking at the tiniest details of their appearance. Even fingernails are inspected.
Ophelia continues to be watched and turned into a piece of art when Bellocq comes to the brothel. Bellocq is a photographer who is there to capture the images of the sex workers in New Orleans. Although their interactions are not sexual, Ophelia still models and poses for Bellocq just like she would for any other patron, but Bellocq isn’t looking for the same type of statuesque posing as the other men. He wants something more candid. In the poem Vignette, Bellocq doesn’t take her photo while she is situated perfectly like a statue, he waits until her guard is down and she is lost in thought, then takes the photo. One part highlights this by saying, “This is how Bellocq takes her, her brow furrowed as she looks to the left, past all of them” (48) After a whole life of being watched, Bellocq finally captures her in a way that makes her feel more seen. With his photographs, he immortalizes her and sets her up for an eternity of being viewed.