Woman in a Moorish Costume, 1869
Jean-Frédéric Bazille
French, 1841-1870
Oil on canvas
39-1/4 x 23-1/4 in. (99.7 x 59 cm)
Norton Simon Art Foundation
M.1997.2.P
© 2010 Norton Simon Art Foundation
On view
Bazille was a member of the group of painters who evolved to become the Impressionists. Here the artist displays an interest in one of the Oriental themes that fascinated nineteenth-century painters and writers. These popular themes included exotic subjects that they imagined derived from French colonies in North Africa; women in harem costumes were among the most popular. This composition is a contrast of textures, as the woman's colorfully patterned costume stands out against the smoothness of the wall and floor. Bazille died shortly before his twenty-ninth birthday during a battle in the Franco-Prussian War.
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