Dervishes Sharing a Meal c. 1720 - 1737

Jean Baptiste Vanmour’s “Dervishes Sharing a Meal,” was rendered with oil on canvas in the 18th century. The artist painstakingly layered the paint to create this scene, revealing a great deal about the depicted culture. Textiles dominate the composition. The Dervishes are lounging on silk cushions, wearing wool felt hats, their bodies draped with woven cotton and linen. Vanmour paid particular attention to the depiction of texture, distinguishing between the dull matte of the dervishes’ robes, and the sheen of glazed ceramic vessels. These details don’t only inform the scene. They also speak to an economy of artisanal production. The making of textiles, ceramics, and even the long smoking pipes depicted here, rely on an untold number of producers. Seen in this way, Vanmour’s painting is not only a window onto a specific time and place, but also the complex networks of labor and exchange which supported it.