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Manet set up stage sets in his studio. "The Bar at the Folies Bergere " was done like that. He had a very specific reason to do so. Influenced by the flatness and simple elegant shapes of Asian art, he wanted to experiment with that effect in his art so he had his figures directly lit by the light thus reducing the form. He was breaking from the traditional realism of the French Salon. It was a brilliant move.
To get the best effect of skin-tones in a setting you have to paint the figure from life. So much subtle color is lost any other way.
Bougereau as well as many other realistic figurative painters of that era has glass houses, like green houses, built outside.
Tricia,
I think this is a wonderful concept. It is so refreshing to see someone painting with actual ideas, avoiding the trite. It is not easy to do and I applaud you for it. Color was the most difficult thing for me also.
It seems to me that the figure in the middle painting could be lit by moonglow.
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