Caravan Passing The Colossi Of Memnon, Thebes 

Jean-Léon Gérôme painted "Caravan Passing The Colossi Of Memnon, Thebes," capturing a scene that reflects European fascination with the "Orient." The painting presents a seemingly objective view of an Egyptian landscape, yet it's steeped in the colonial gaze of 19th-century Europe. Gérôme, like many of his contemporaries, exoticized the East, feeding into Western fantasies of a timeless, unchanging world. The caravan, dwarfed by the ancient colossi, reinforces a narrative of a land rich in history but lacking modern agency. We are presented with an image of anonymous figures within the caravan whose identities and stories are subsumed by the landscape. This work invites us to consider the power dynamics inherent in representation, and how cultural narratives are constructed and perpetuated through art. How does our understanding of history and identity shift when we consider whose perspective is being centered?