The "Muße der Odalisken" (Leisure of the Odalisques) by German artist Ferdinand Max Bredt shows an idealized scene of two young harem ladies, so-called odalisques, in a splendid room in a palace with "oriental" tiles, carpets and a shallow basin. Sunlight falls in through an opened door which leads into a garden, bathing the whole scene in a charming interplay of light and shade, which, at the same time, emanates an atmosphere of both a refreshing breeze and gentle warmth. One of the two women, in vaguely Turkish dress, plays an exotic Komuz lute in the background, the other one, the painting’s main figure, reclines on the carpet, her left hand idly twirling in the water, her eyes towards the observer. With great poise Bredt manages to add a seducing-sensuous notion to this seemingly innocent scene of the two chastely dressed ladies, simply by means of the reclined odalisque’s direct look, allowing us to make her the focus of our attention. Though little known today, Bredt was widely recognized in his lifetime for his works categorized in the "Orientalist" art style. The Leipzig native had learned the trade of a book dealer before he studied painting at the academies of Munich and Stuttgart. Bredt rendered his impressions of numerous journeys through Turkey, Greece and Tunisia in his works, which made him a successful orient painter of his time. His works were shown in Berlin, London, Paris and Chicago, his "oriental" motifs, nudes and fairy tale scenes were particularly popular. But he also showed an interest in "oriental" architecture: he built his studio and residence in Ruhpolding in Arabian style and contributed to the "oriental design" of a public bath in Stuttgart, Germany.
Muße der Odalisken (Leisure of the Odalisque) by Ferdinand Max Bredt (German) - Oil on firm cardboard / Late 1800s #womeninart #art #oilpainting #FerdinandMaxBredt #GermanArtist #odalisque #GermanArt #Bredt #beauty #relax #artwork #orientalism #fineart #womensart #portraitofawoman #leisure #relaxing