A century and a half ago, Manet’s Olympia caused something of an uproar when it was shown in the Paris Salon of 1865. The central figure, a woman, reclines on a bed, adorned with certain decorations – a bracelet, pearl earrings, an orchid in her hair – that would have led contemporary audiences to recognise her as a prostitute. More “shocking”, however, was her direct gaze, confronting the (typically male) viewer and breaking the convention of passive female nudes.