Oriental scene 1876

Adolphe Joseph Thomas Monticelli created this oil on panel titled ‘Oriental Scene’ during a time when French Orientalism was at its peak. It depicts figures in what Monticelli imagines to be an ‘oriental’ setting. The people are adorned in colorful, vaguely ‘eastern’ clothing. During the 19th century, the "Orient" was often romanticized by European artists, who frequently portrayed Middle Eastern and North African cultures through a lens of exoticism and otherness. There was a fascination with harems, markets, and desert landscapes, all seen as mysterious and sensual. Monticelli, who never traveled to the regions he depicts, relied on such stereotypes. While beautiful in its painterly style, we must consider how it perpetuates skewed perceptions of non-Western cultures. Monticelli's painting invites us to reflect on how cultural exchange can be fraught with misrepresentation and how essential it is to approach such works with a critical eye. Ultimately, this work makes us question the narratives we construct about those different from ourselves.