A Jewess of Morocco: Costume de Fête
Artist
Charles-Emile-Hippolyte Lecomte-Vernet
(French, 1821-1900)
Date1868
MediumOil on canvas
Dimensions50 3/4 x 34 1/4 in. (128.9 x 87 cm)
Overall, Frame: 66 1/2 x 50 x 4 in. (168.9 x 127 x 10.2 cm)
Overall, Frame: 66 1/2 x 50 x 4 in. (168.9 x 127 x 10.2 cm)
ClassificationsEuropean art
Credit LineGift of Walter P. Chrysler, Jr.
Object number71.2059
Terms
- Woman
- Jewish
- Judaica
Collections
On View
Not on viewLabel TextCharles-Emile-Hippolyte Lecomte-Vernet French (1821-1900) A Jewess of Morocco: Costume de Fête, 1868 Oil on canvas, 50 3/4 x 34 1/4 in. Chrysler Museum of Art, Norfolk, VA Gift of Walter P. Chrysler, Jr. 71.2059 In the decades following Napoleon's Egyptian campaign (1798-99), Europeans became increasingly fascinated by the rich and still mysterious Islamic cultures of the East, prompting many to travel there for a closer look. In their quest for new and exotic experiences, artists, too, journeyed to North Africa and the eastern Mediterranean, or Holy Land-a vast, ethnically diverse region that Europeans described simply as the Orient. Returning home, many artists specialized in romantic depictions of Moroccan, Egyptian, and Near Eastern life, fueling the European taste for "Orientalist" art. The Parisian painter Lecomte-Vernet made the journey at least once, in 1863, and devoted much of his later career to images of beautiful North African women in elaborate, ceremonial dress. His seductive, brilliant-hued Jewess of Morocco is a striking example.
