Orientalism

Introduction

Asian art is diverse and rich. It spans thousands of years and dozens of countries. It is known for its ceremonial bronzes, beautiful ceramics, jades, textiles, poetic painting landscapes, garden design, elaborate goldsmithing, exquisite temples, shrines, woodcuts, shadow puppets, and high art form in East Asian art (Asian Art | Oxford Art). Asia is not a homogeneous landscape, but a place of multiple and intersecting geographies, cultures, societies, histories and landscapes. The idea of "Asian" art is partly a Western classification and construction developed in the countries that make up the continent.

The origin and development of modern art is usually related to modernity and the perception of industrial development, progress and social segments of Western society. The concept of individuality and the ability to question and contrast (social) appearances and general social assumptions with contemporary works of art seem to be related to Western narratives of contemporary art (Michel-Schertges).

Geography

Geographically, West Asia includes Iraq, Iran, whose territory (previously included Persia, Syria, and the Eastern Mediterranean), the Arabian Peninsula (which includes Yemen, Oman, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and the United Arab Emirates and Anatolia and the Caucasus), and North Africa (Meccarelli et al.). Although the term West Asia is not generally accepted, it is often used even today. The region is commonly referred to as either the Middle East, Eastern Mediterranean and Near East, which today is considered obsolete (Wikipedia contributors). In the show, we will refer to the region as Western Asia for the sake of uniformity, as we will refer to the rest of Asia in a similar way.

Orientalism Introduction

This period, for Western Asia, is associated with Orientalism. In art, Orientalism is most often used specifically to refer to the painting style developed in the nineteenth century that depicted the regions of Western Asia, North Africa, and the southeastern tip of Europe. Orientalist painting flourished in the art academies of Europe in the nineteenth century and in this sense was associated with the tradition of academic art. The history of orientalist art is the story of the slow development of a distinct genre that would eventually culminate in its creation French Society of Orientalist Painters in 1893 (‘Orientalist Paintings’).

In the nineteenth century, for most Europeans, West Asia was a kind of mystery, a blank canvas on which a wild dream could be projected, as they had never been. Nineteenth-century West Asia was, in short, a fantasy. And although the region slowly but surely reached throughout the nineteenth century, the people who dared there indulged in this fantasy to the extreme. The so-called "orientalist" painters created extraordinary images of rich, abundant landscapes, sensory and erotic pleasures and vivid emotions. The West Asia depicted in the orientalist paintings of the nineteenth century was both real and not real: viewers knew that the place existed, somewhere. And yet every element of it was fantastic, as if it belonged to a completely different world (‘Orientalist Paintings’).

History

The fascination with the Middle East arose from the combination of political, intellectual and literary forces. It was this fascination that inspired orientalist painters. Although developed from the romantic tradition of painting, orientalist artists, during the 19th century, developed their own distinct style of painting. The history of orientalist art is the history of the slow development of a distinct genre that culminated in the creation of the French Society of Orientalist Painters in 1893, chaired by Jean-Léon Gérôme, one of the most important in the movement (‘Orientalist Paintings’).

Arts

Orientalist painting flourished in the art academies of Europe in the 19th century and in this sense was associated with the tradition of academic art. The orientalist style of painting also had a less significant influence on other art and design mediums, including sculpture, architecture, and decorative arts, which can be described as a distinct "orientalist" style (‘Orientalist Paintings’).

Although orientalist painters were all inspired by what they saw as the beauty of West Asia, many of them never traveled there, instead relying on descriptions they had read in travelogues and literature. However, many of the most important painters traveled themselves and what they painted was based on the sketches they had made while they were there and the objects they brought with them. Therefore, orientalist paintings took the form of landscapes, archaeological paintings and, most commonly, scenes depicting ordinary West Asian people in everyday environments. And yet, although these paintings were depictions of ordinary people going about their daily lives, they were strikingly exotic. Exoticism is perhaps the defining characteristic of orientalist art: its subjects are stereotypes, its details are exaggerated, the sensory worlds of tastes and smells are passionately invoked. With their vivid color and exquisite detail, the best orientalist paintings have almost photographic properties. In addition to exoticism, eroticism was an equally important part of orientalist art. Women were often naked and in sensual poses for the title of their Western viewers. Of course, however, orientalist art covers a wide range of different genres of painting made by artists from all over Europe each in their own distinct style (‘Orientalist Paintings’).

French orientalist painting

France was the birthplace of orientalist painting. Romantic painters such as Delacroix created the first famous depictions of the East with large, gruesome battle scenes. But as the century progressed, French orientalist artists became increasingly engaged in genre painting, which would become the main form of French orientalist art. The subjects of French orientalist art dealt with routine activities: eating, drinking, bathing, shopping, and praying. French orientalist works also tended to be more explicitly erotic than their other European counterparts. Indeed, the harem was an extremely common setting for orientalist works of art. Male painters were not allowed to enter harems and so harem paintings were mostly the result of artists' imaginations. That is why many harem paintings have almost voyeuristic properties. Similarly, the paintings of loose odalisks, that is, women who were maids in harems (Meagher).

British orientalist painting

British orientalist painting, on the other hand, tended to be less flashy and sexual than French art. When women or harem were the subjects, they tended to be fully clothed and possess a kind of Victorian moral seriousness. The prominent British painter John Frederick Lewis (1804–1876), for example, used his wife as a model for his harem paintings. Perhaps this was a result of Victorian Britain's tighter control over sexual morality, but perhaps it was also a simple consequence of stricter adherence to British painters' sketches. This was true as much for painting as for landscape painting and topographic painting. Styles of home architecture were a recurring theme in British painting of the period. An important strand of British orientalist art that allowed itself to deviate from artists' sketches was religious in nature. Because West Asia had long been recognized as the land of the Bible, painters used the landscapes they had seen on their travels as backdrops for paintings of religious scenes. The scapegoat (1854–56) by William Holman Hunt William(1854–56) depicts the famous "scapegoat" described in the book of Leviticus in the Old Testament of the Bible (Meagher).

Major orientalist artists

The first painter to become known through a distinctly "orientalist" style was Delacroix (1798-1863), whose painting The Women of Algiers (1834) is one of the most famous early works of orientalist art. At the same time, Jean Auguste-Dominique Ingres (1780-1867) pioneered Orientalism through a stricter neoclassical tradition. His pupil Hasseríau (1819–1856) developed the style in France, along with artists such as Decamps (1803–1860). In France, however, the artist most associated with the orientalist movement was later Jérôme (1824-1904). His work is often sensual and erotic. He tried to capture what he saw as the high drama and passion of "eastern life." In Britain, it was Sir David Wilkie (1785-1841) who first ventured into West Asia to paint portraits of the sultans and Ottoman military commanders of Syria, Egypt and Jerusalem. He was later followed by John Frederick Lewis (1804–1876), perhaps the most prominent of the British orientalist painters, known particularly for his exceptional attention to detail and realism. Also important in British Orientalism were David Roberts (1796-1864) and later William Holman Hunt (1827-1910). Holman Hunt was also famous for creating the pre-Raphaelite fraternity, which was extremely important in British art history. Elsewhere in Europe, painters such as the Germans Ferdinand Max Brent (1860–1921) and Gustav Bauernfeind (1848–1904) and Austrians Ludwig Deutsch (1855–1935) and Rudolf Ernst (1854–1932) also won audiences for their imaginative, detailed, sensual depictions of the "East" in intense, vivid colors (‘Orientalist Paintings’).

Other arts

Painting was not the only medium influenced by the oriental style. The new interest in the Middle East in the 19th century and the new fashion for the visual culture of the East gave rise to developments in many different artistic media, such as sculpture, architecture, and decorative arts. Orientalist sculpture was often adopted by many of the same painters who specialized in orientalist works. A notable example is Jérôme, who took up sculpture late in his career but produced some impressive bronzes. Elsewhere, French sculptors such as Hélée Guillemin (1841–1907) and Jean-Syl Salmson (1823–1902) specialized in sculpting Middle Eastern subjects. The orientalist style was particularly associated with the coldly painted bronze works of the famous Austrian artist Frans Bergman (1861-1936).

In architecture, orientalism has had less impact, but there are a few notable examples, most notably the Royal Pavilion of Brighton, the seaside leisure palace built for King George IV of England in the early 19th century. The pavilion is a complex mix of different oriental styles, including Islamic ones, but it also drew inspiration from India, China and Japan. Orientalist interiors also became popular in Britain during the latter part of the 19th century: the most famous example of an interior inspired by the East was the London residence of artist Frederic Leighton (1830-1896), now open to the public as the Leighton House Museum (‘Orientalist Paintings’).

In the decorative arts, the influence of orientalism was most noticeable in the 19th century, and was born at least in part from a slightly different tradition from orientalist painting. Just as there was a fashion for it Chinouazeri (chinoiserie) in 18th century Europe, it could also be said that there was a similar fashion for Turquerie dating back to the 15th century and which tried to imitate the artistic styles of the Ottoman Empire. A major manufacturer of Islamic style decorative art in the late 19th century was the French potter Théodore Deck (1823–1891), highly revered for his works by orientalist faience. The important orientalist painter Ernst also opened a pottery workshop dedicated to the production of Eastern-themed faience tiles (‘Orientalist Paintings’).

Music

As far as music is concerned, the use of the term orientalism is not consistent and definitive, just a specific variety of musical exoticism. A clear demonstration of this rush to judgment is the sincere assertion of John Richardson, in his study of Ahnaten Philip Glass, that there are, in fact, appropriate uses of musical representation, as defined by the political agenda, but that they are difficult to find. He emphasizes this aspect of Glass's opera, observing that he did indeed have "some moments when the music seems to suggest 'ancient Egyptianness' in a relatively indirect way. For Britten, oriental music offered an idealized imaginary space where his own culture's oppressive gender restrictions did not apply (Bellman).

Seen in this light, orientalism in music is less about music than orientalism, which means the crucial imperative to confront, interrogate and resist ideologically imperial and colonial ways of thinking. Thus, the use of any kind of musical exoticism is by definition ideologically suspect, unless extenuating circumstances restore it (Bellman).

Matthew Head proposes dogmatic postcolonialism in the most disconnected way. Head's view is based on the oppositional model and as he states: "The connection of music with orientalism is made painful by the habit of Western civilization to alter its own musical practices," although in a footnote he acknowledges that the concept of a Western civilization is "an extremely problematic field, saturated with assumptions of a closed, purified, purified,  homogeneous, both developmentally, but also historically, autonomous kingdom". The obvious irony in his statements is that while he accepts that there is no monolithic "Western" civilization, this does not prevent him from using this construct, and thus, falls into the traps that the postcolonial subsector supposedly sought to avoid (Bellman).

Orientalism today

Several of the world's best galleries and museums showcase 19th-century orientalist paintings. The Louvre in France contains most of the best-known French orientalist works, while the Tate in Britain holds the best British examples. Much of orientalist art is privately owned. In addition to still being exhibited in galleries worldwide, orientalist art also lives in another, more profound sense: continuing to influence the way artists and audiences think, view, and portray West Asia. Oriental themes, for example, continued to be important to several of the best-known "contemporary" artists of the 20th century, including Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Henri Matisse, Paul Klee, and Vasily Kandinsky. But it could even be argued that the work of 19th-century Orientalists influences the way we today think and portray the West Asian region. This was indeed the argument of the famous book by cultural critic Edward Said Orientalism (1978), to which we owe the name of the species. The exotic fantasies of orientalist painters about the East live both in our minds and in our art (‘Orientalist Paintings’).

Bibliography

A Brief History of the Cultures of Asia (Article) | Khan Academy. https://www.khanacademy.org/_render. Accessed 19 Sept. 2022.

'Aida'. Wikipedia, 7 Nov. 2022. Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Aida&oldid=1120441089.

'Akhnaten (Opera)'. Wikipedia, 8 Sept. 2022. Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Akhnaten_(opera)&oldid=1109170669.

Asian Art | Oxford Art. https://www.oxfordartonline.com/page/asian-art. Accessed 22 Sept. 2022.

Bellman, J. D. ‘Musical Voyages and Their Baggage: Orientalism in Music and Critical Musicology’. The Musical Quarterly, vol. 94, no. 3, Sept. 2011, pp. 417–38. DOI.org (Crossref), https://doi.org/10.1093/musqtl/gdr014.

'Beni Mora'. Wikipedia, 10 Oct. 2022. Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Beni_Mora&oldid=1115194605.

‘Der Graf von Gleichen’. Wikipedia, 22 July 2021. Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Der_Graf_von_Gleichen&oldid=1034876909

Der Graf von Gleichen, D. 918, Act I (Completed by R. Dünster) : Act I: Introduktion. Directed by Various Artists - Topic, 2016. YouTube, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SjXkk1ae0PA.

The Beautiful Magelone - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Die_sch%C3%B6ne_Magelone. Accessed 13 Nov. 2022.

‘Franz Schubert’. Wikipedia, 13 Nov. 2022. Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Franz_Schubert&oldid=1121627255.

'Giuseppe Verdi'. Wikipedia, 14 Sept. 2022. Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Giuseppe_Verdi&oldid=1110348646.

‘Gustav Holst’. Wikipedia, 2 Nov. 2022. Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Gustav_Holst&oldid=1119618936.

Holst ‘Beni Mora’ Oriental Suite - Sascha Goetzel Conducts. Directed by adam28xx, 2020. YouTube, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QET2xEPvHvs.

‘Les Baxter’. Wikipedia, 11 Nov. 2022. Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Les_Baxter&oldid=1121372134.

'Love story of the beautiful Magelone and Count Peter of Provence'. Wikipedia, 18 Sept. 2022. Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Liebesgeschichte_der_sch%C3%B6nen_Magelone_und_des_Grafen_Peter_von_Provence&oldid=1110919949.

Lugansky - Rachmaninoff, Moments Musicaux, Op. 16. Directed by Enchanted Wanderer, 2020. YouTube, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P0DXSqPILBQ.

Meagher, Authors: Jennifer. ‘Orientalism in Nineteenth-Century Art | Essay | The Metropolitan Museum of Art | Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History’. The Met’s Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History, https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/euor/hd_euor.htm. Accessed 26 Sept. 2022.

Meccarelli, Marco, et al. CHINA AND THE WEST IN THE ART OF THE 19 TH CENTURY: A CULTURAL AND HISTORICAL REVIEW OF THE RELATIONS BETWEEN PAINTING AND PHOTOGRAPHY.*. 2013, pp. 117–60.

Michel-Schertges, Dirk. ‘Contemporary Asian Art and Western Societies: Cultural “Universalism” or “Uniqueness” in Asian Modern Art’. Asian Journal of German and European Studies, vol. 4, no. 1, Oct. 2019, p. 6. BioMed Central, https://doi.org/10.1186/s40856-019-0042-4.

Mussorgsky: Pictures at an Exhibition ( Full ) - BPO / Karajan*. Directed by greatclassicrecords, 2013. YouTube, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kkC3chi_ysw.

‘One Thousand and One Nights’. Wikipedia, 29 Sept. 2022. Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=One_Thousand_and_One_Nights&oldid=1113057254.

‘Orientalist Paintings: 19th Century Fantasies of the East’. Mayfair Gallery, https://www.mayfairgallery.com/blog/orientalist-paintings-19th-century-fantasies-east/. Accessed 26 Sept. 2022.

‘Philip Glass’. Wikipedia, 5 Nov. 2022. Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Philip_Glass&oldid=1120173872.

PHILIP GLASS - AKHNATEN. Directed by Deltadesignart, 2018. YouTube, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PufT63ER0uY.

‘Polovtsian Dances’. Wikipedia, 20 Oct. 2022. Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Polovtsian_Dances&oldid=1117237069.

‘Prince Igor’. Wikipedia, 19 Sept. 2022. Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Prince_Igor&oldid=1111185960.

Romanou, Katy. 'RUSSIAN MUSIC I IN THE RUSSIA OF THE TSARS'. Notes for students DEPARTMENT OF MUSIC STUDIES UNIVERSITY OF ATHENS 2001, Jan. 2001. www.academia.edu, https://www.academia.edu/38664175/%CE%A1%CE%A9%CE%A3%CE%99%CE%9A%CE%97_%CE%9C%CE%9F%CE%A5%CE%A3%CE%99%CE%9A%CE%97_%CE%91_%CE%A3%CE%A4%CE%97%CE%9D_%CE%A1%CE%A9%CE%A3%CE%99%CE%91_%CE%A4%CE%A9%CE%9D_%CE%A4%CE%A3%CE%91%CE%A1%CE%A9%CE%9D.

‘Samson and Delilah (Opera)’. Wikipedia, 1 Oct. 2022. Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Samson_and_Delilah_(opera)&oldid=1113339916.

Scheherazade (Rimsky-Korsakov) - Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scheherazade_(Rimsky-Korsakov). Accessed 2 Oct. 2022.

‘Six Moments Musicaux (Rachmaninoff)’. Wikipedia, 2 Apr. 2022. Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Six_moments_musicaux_(Rachmaninoff)&oldid=1080587675.

Stanyon, Blake. ‘Sergi Rachmaninov and Russian Musical Orientalism’. Close Encounters With Music, 11 Mar. 2021, https://cewm.org/magazine-articles/sergi-rachmaninov-and-russian-musical-orientalism/.

‘Sulima | Song Texts, Lyrics & Translations’. Oxford Lieder, https://www.oxfordlieder.co.uk/song/3551. Accessed 13 Nov. 2022.

Valentine, Jill. ‘Nationalism in Russia: Musical Orientalism’. Lammas Green Music Studio, 9 May 2020, https://lammasgreenmusicstudio.co.uk/2020/05/09/nationalism-in-russia-musical-orientalism/.

Verdi: Aida - San Francisco Opera (Starring Luciano Pavarotti). Directed by Warner Classics, 2012. YouTube, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b8rsOzPzYr8.

Wikipedia Contributors. ‘Modest Mussorgsky’. Wikipedia, Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 22 Sept. 2022. Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Modest_Mussorgsky&oldid=1111720174.

Wikipedia contributors. ‘Western Asia’. Western Asia, Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 13 Sept. 2022, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Western_Asia&oldid=1110097573.