Chris Ofili Turns to Laure, the Model Behind Manet's Olympia
The artist Chris Ofili is showing new works inspired by Laure, the Black model who posed for Édouard Manet's painting Olympia (1863), at the Pinacoteca Agnelli in Turin, Italy.
The exhibition runs from 30 October until 4 April 2027. It is part of Beyond the Collection, a curatorial series at the museum that places new work alongside pieces from its own holdings. The Art Newspaper reported the details.
Ofili's new pieces include a large-scale painting, a watercolour and a series of drawings. The painting, Saint Laure (2026), is the same size as Manet's Olympia. Both works are set beside a Manet study drawn from the Pinacoteca Agnelli's own collection, Portrait of Laure (La Négresse), dated to around 1862.
That study was first titled La Négresse. The museum now uses the name Portrait of Laure (La Négresse), which puts the sitter's name at the front. The official title of the show, as listed on the museum's website, is LAURE. CHRIS OFILI & ÉDOUARD MANET.
Sarah Cosulich is the director of the Pinacoteca Agnelli. Pietro Rigolo, the museum's chief curator and head of collection, is the curator of the Ofili exhibition.
The museum's website also lists Alberto Savinio. Souvenir, which opened alongside the Laure show from 30 October. A Pinacoteca Agnelli x C2C Festival 2026 event was set for 29 October, linked to both exhibitions. A preview for the Ofili and Manet show was scheduled for 29 October at 6:30pm.
The Turin show is not Ofili's only London-to-Europe moment this season. His solo exhibition at the Hayward Gallery in London runs from 7 September until 9 January 2028. That show will be his largest London solo exhibition since his Tate Britain show in 2010, according to The Art Newspaper.
For visitors, the practical point is simple. Laure's story is now told from two sides in one building. The Manet study shows the model in a portrait made in the 1860s. Ofili's new work answers it in paint, paper and pencil, and the museum has set the two next to each other for the length of the run.
Those who want to see it can reach the Pinacoteca Agnelli's Lingotto venue at Via Nizza 262/103 in Turin.
