#Exoticism

Henri Lehmann's 1837 "Woman of the 'Orient'" is an oil on canvas painting by the German-born French artist. The artwork features a sensuous figure in rich, romantic attire against a seaside landscape, reflecting the influence of Lehmann's mentor, French painter Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres. The artwork's rich colors and sensuous portrayal of the figure align with the Romanticism prevalent at the time. The painting combines detailed brushwork with imaginative details, such as the stylized leaves, vines, and flowers in the pattern on her clothing and the misty peach and blue of the distant horizon. Lehmann used a classical realist touch, foregrounding its female subject with mirror-like perfection. A young woman, seemingly of classical or antique inspiration, is seated on a balcony. Her dark hair is neatly arranged under a light-colored lace wrap. Her expression is almost melancholic with her gaze is directed away from us. Her skin tone is relatively fair, with subtle shading. She wears a simple, pale-cream sleeveless tunic, falling loosely over her shoulders, and a dark teal robe with a subtle, repeating pattern. The fabric of her clothes shows deep folds and shadows, hinting at their texture and weight. Her hands rest gently in her lap. She sits on a stone balustrade of a balcony that overlooks a calm expanse of cool blue sea. The tranquil sky above is a soft blue, almost cloudless. Lehmann's approach made Easternness as exotic as the Grecian antiquity from which the West has drawn its wealth of foundational ideas. Although the painting is as crystal clear and sharply defined as an icon, there is not a trace of Christian symbolism. Its model is a figment of purity, as clean and innocent as the clothes in which she is draped like the curtains that round out the beautifully lit, seaside vista. Ultimately, the realism of Lehmann's anonymous portrait is unconvincing, as the woman could have easily been identified as any Roman goddess or Mother Mary.

Woman of the "Orient" by Henri Lehmann (German-French) - Oil on canvas / 1837 - National Gallery of Art (Washington DC) #WomenInArt #art #artText #OilPainting #PortraitofaWoman #Romanticism #Exoticism #artwork #BlueskyArt #FineArt #Orientalism #1830s #HenriLehmann #Lehmann #NGA #NationalGalleryofArt

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Michael

@mdstamper.bsky.social

6 months ago

"The Sorceress" was French artist Georges Merle’s submission to the Paris Salon exhibition of 1883. The beautiful commanding female figure in the act of performing a spell is likely a subject from literature, although the source has yet to be identified. To many European artists, the Middle East and Asia proved both captivating and mysterious. Orientalist art allowed Europeans to project their desires and fears onto real or imagined cultures entirely different from their own while leaving themselves ostensibly unchanged. They found the rich colors, lush textiles, and distinctive architecture of the East particularly attractive. Merle depicts an "exotic" dark-haired woman. Her clothing, surroundings, and implements – a voodoo doll, upside-down crucifix, and pentagram with Arabic inscriptions – all indicate that she is in the midst of a magical spell. She is seated on the floor in an ornate, silvery-white gown adorned with gold patterns. She wears a vibrant red head covering and numerous gold and jeweled bracelets and rings, enhancing her regal and exotic appearance. Her piercing gaze is serious and intense, hinting at focus and power. She holds a tall, ornate staff, resembling a ceremonial wand. Behind her, partially obscured, is a dark background depicting a pentagram and other arcane symbols, adding to an occult theme. To her right, on a small, richly patterned table, rests a human skull in a shallow dish. Before her on the floor lies a small, fallen doll dressed in red, stabbed in the heart with a gold pin. A long, dark candle burns brightly, casting a warm glow that contrasts with the overall somber mood of the room. The atmosphere is one of mystery, foreboding, and concentrated magical power. The color palette is predominantly dark, with the woman's dress and the candle offering highlights against the deeper shadows. Merle's meticulous attention to the clothing, jewelry, and ritual objects, contributes to the sense of opulent and detailed ritual preparation.

The Sorceress (L’Envoûteuse) by Georges Merle (French) - Oil on canvas / 1883 - Birmingham Museum of Art (Alabama) #WomenInArt #art #artText #GeorgesMerle #Merle #FrenchArtist #artwork #OilPainting #PortraitofaWoman #FrenchArt #BirminghamMuseumofArt #sorcery #Orientalism #BlueskyArt #Exoticism

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RoseCrow - Temple of Ma'at Knoxville

@rosecrow.bsky.social

8 months ago

knoxvillerose.etsy.com/listing/1070...

Baudelaire - a biography by #Sartre #vintagebooks

#firstedition #philosophy #existentialism #flowersofevil #poetry #literature #art #romanticism #realism #exoticism #booksforsale #booksky #vintage #bookseller #smallbusiness #biography

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Helen Metsä

@helenmetsa.bsky.social

9 months ago

I love the powerful, free, sexual women (Miriana & Erika) on #eurovision this year. But I'm puzzled with the exotic vibe in Malta's song. Why use it and why mark sexuality with stereotypical exoticness? That's how I interpret it. Otherwise the song is 💯🔥
#euroviisut #exoticism

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David B. Himself

@handle.invalid

1 year ago

All of this BS about Japan being this country full of mysterious wisdom must die.

#Japan #Exoticism #Orientalism

RE: famichiki.jp/users/KuramaSuben/status...

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Pauline Park

@paulinepark.bsky.social

1 year ago

Margaretha Geertruida Zelle was executed for spying for #Germany #OnThisDay in 1917; the Dutch dancer had become famous as #MataHari, appropriating Indian & Javanese dances in a cavalcade of #exoticism; so maybe she should have been executed for cultural misappropriation instead~!

Margaretha Geertruida Zelle was executed for spying for #Germany #OnThisDay in 1917; the Dutch dancer was famous as #MataHari, appropriating Indian & Javanese dances in a cavalcade of #exoticism; she should have been executed for cultural misappropriation instead~!
www.history.com/this-day-in-...

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Global Village School

@globalvillageschool.org

1 year ago

The museum arranged for the statue to be turned over to the Iraqi Ambassador "[a]fter provenance research by the Museum’s scholars established that the works rightfully belong to the Republic of Iraq."

#museumcollections #colonialism #exoticism #orientalism

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