Jungle with Lion 1910

Henri Rousseau painted "Jungle with Lion," using oil on canvas, at an unknown date. Rousseau never left France, so his jungle scenes came from his imagination, visits to botanical gardens, and popular imagery of his time. In the late 19th century, Europe’s colonial expansion fueled a fascination with exotic lands and people, often romanticized and misunderstood. Rousseau’s work reflects this era, presenting a vision of the jungle that is both captivating and constructed. The lion here is regal and still, almost domesticated. There is an evident stillness in the scene. How does this reflect the power dynamics between the colonizer and the colonized? Does it romanticize colonial narratives? Rousseau’s jungle is as much a product of the European imagination as it is a representation of the natural world. "When I am in these greenhouses," Rousseau said, "I feel that I am entering a strange land." The painting invites us to consider the complex relationship between fantasy, power, and representation.