Orientalist Art

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Christie’s is delighted to present masterpieces of unsurpassed quality by John Frederick Lewis, Gustav Bauernfeind and Jean-Léon Gérôme in the upcoming dedicated sale of Orientalist Art.  

Lewis’ 1872 depiction of Cairo’s Bezestein Bazaar of El Khan Khalil is an exciting composition, filled with life and energy, and a true reflection of the bazaar through the eyes of arguably the greatest British Orientalist artist. On 9 April 1889 Gustave Bauernfeind’s diary describes how he had a chance encounter with the warden of the mosque on his exploration of the city of Damascus, which would form the basis of this very detailed and rare glimpse into the sacred Sinan Pasha Mosque. The painting is characterised by the artist’s very accomplished use of colour and light, which transports the spectator and shares a view into a place and culture unknown to many in its time. Jean-Léon Gérôme's intensely powerful Un Chef Bachi-Bouzouk, painted when the artist was at the height of his powers, depicts a chieftain of a group the artist prized as a subject for their unabashed masculinity and the individuality and colourfulness of their costumes.

Christie’s Orientalist Art auction encompasses a wide variety of works which form an artistic dialogue between cultures. Highlights also include works by famed artists such as Carl Haag, Frederick Arthur Bridgman and Rudolf Ernst. They each draw on their experiences to offer unique insights into daily life in the Middle East in the 19^th Century.