How did 19th century artists and scientists come to rediscover Egypt and the Middle East? How did the images and explorations of those artists and scientists spark “Egyptomania” as a cultural phenomenon?
Two museums in the Puget Sound area try to answer those questions with complementary exhibitions that look at Egypt and the Middle East through the eyes of those 19th century artists and scientists.
Monumental figures of Pharaohs carved from the living rock, impressing and intimidating generations of viewers over the course of centuries, are familiar images of Egypt. Carved for a political and religious purpose, the style of the art serves a function—to overawe the viewer. A different kind of art is a painting of a ruined temple along the Nile, backlit with sunset and with waving palms overhead. Instead of overawing, it draws the viewer in for a different kind of response, arguably that of romance, mystery and a sense of the exotic. Although both can exist for propaganda purposes, the first is overt and grand in scale, while the second is subtle and more dependent on the viewer’s participation in the concept.
The Frye Art Museum’s terrific exhibit, “Napoleon on the Nile” (through January 4, 2009), is a wonderful excursion through both of these uses of art. The unifying theme for the exhibit is Egypt, its rediscovery by the west, and the development of Orientalist art. Works that span the millennia are combined in a fluent and involving way for the museum visitor.
The exhibit tells the story of Napoleon’s doomed attempt to conquer Egypt (1798-1801), which had the side effect of Western Europe rediscovering ancient Egyptian arts and sciences. The up-and-coming General Bonaparte, as he was then, brought artists and scientists with him on the expedition. The artists reproduced the images and sculptures they found. The scientists explored archaeological sites, unearthed lost treasures and translated messages from the past. Upon their return to Europe, interest in the East was kindled and a fascination was launched for what would become known as “Orientalist” art. To be sure, much of it was propagandistic, for example with images of Napoleon’s conquering army in the midst of pyramids and camels, but as well there were many more followers producing fine works laden with the color and detail that evoke a sense of the mysterious and exotic land.
As noted in the exhibit, after British Admiral Nelson’s destruction of the French military forces in Egypt, it also came into vogue, in a patriotic way, to create Orientalist works for British consumption. Great Orientalist art was produced for decades thereafter, on into the Victorian age. The exhibit displays items from throughout that period. Also of interest in the exhibit are the incidental artifacts of the era, including such mundane items as supply orders signed by General Bonaparte. The art ranges from immensely oversized pages from the classic Description de l’Égypte to works by noted painters such as Edwin Longsden Long, Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema, and Jean-Léon Gérôme.
The second exhibit is at the Tacoma Art Museum and is called, “Oasis: Western Dreams of the Ottoman Empire from the Dahesh Museum of Art,” also through January 4, 2009. Similar in tone to the Frye’s exhibit, it also reflects western art’s response to the landscapes and cultures of the Middle East. Both exhibits are on loan from the Dahesh Museum in New York.
The Arts, Recreation and Literature Department of the Central Library is currently featuring a display in support of the exhibits, including prints of Egypt by David Roberts, a Victorian era Scottish artist, “from drawings made on the spot” in 1849. The display is located in the gallery space on Level 8 of the Central Library.
~ Carl K.
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