Art Blog

07 Photographs, Streets of Cairo & Ghizeh from the 17th &18 Century, Egypt, with footnotes

Francis Bedford, (1815-94)

The Sphinx, the Great Pyramid and two lesser Pyramids, Ghizeh, Egypt, 4 March 1862

Albumen print

23.1 x 29.5 cm

Acquired by King Edward VII when Prince of Wales, 1862

Royal Collection Trust, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II 2014

The Prince and his companions visited the pyramids on camels, which the Prince described as ‘not at all an unpleasant mode of conveyance’. They viewed the Sphinx just before sunset and decided to set up an encampment below the pyramids where they slept for the night in order to climb the Great Pyramid before sunrise the following day.

The Great Pyramid of Giza is the oldest and largest of the three pyramids in the Giza pyramid complex bordering what is now El Giza, Egypt. It is the oldest of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, and the only one to remain largely intact.

Based on a mark in an interior chamber naming the work gang and a reference to the fourth dynasty Egyptian Pharaoh Khufu, Egyptologists believe that the pyramid was built as a tomb over a 10- to 20-year period concluding around 2560 BC. Initially at 146.5 metres (481 feet), the Great Pyramid was the tallest man-made structure in the world for more than 3,800 years. Originally, the Great Pyramid was covered by limestone casing stones that formed a smooth outer surface; what is seen today is the underlying core structure. Some of the casing stones that once covered the structure can still be seen around the base. There have been varying scientific and alternative theories about the Great Pyramid's construction techniques. Most accepted construction hypotheses are based on the idea that it was built by moving huge stones from a quarry and dragging and lifting them into place. More on The Great Pyramid of Giza

Francis Bedford (1815 in London – 15 May 1894) was an English photographer. He began his career as an architectural draughtsman and lithographer, before taking up photography in the early 1850s.

He helped to found the Royal Photographic Society in 1853. In 1854, at Marlborough House Queen Victoria commissioned him to photograph objects in the royal collection.

Francis gave 'Lithographic Artist' as his profession. When the 1861 census was taken, Francis, now an 'Artist', was staying at a hotel in Peterborough. Ten years later he was living at 326 Camden Road, London. Francis now gave 'Photographic Artist' as his profession. He was still at the same address in 1881. More on Francis Bedford

Francis Frith, (1822-1898)
Illustrations of Egypt, ca.1870
Photograph

Francis Frith (also spelled Frances Frith, 7 October 1822 – 25 February 1898) was an English photographer of the Middle East and many towns in the United Kingdom. Frith was born in Chesterfield, Derbyshire, attending Quaker schools at Ackworth and Quaker Camp Hill in Birmingham (ca. 1828–1838), before he started in the cutlery business. He suffered a nervous breakdown in 1843, recuperating over the next two years. In 1850 he started a photographic studio in Liverpool, known as Frith & Hayward. A successful grocer, and later, printer, Frith fostered an interest in photography, becoming a founding member of the Liverpool Photographic Society in 1853. Frith sold his companies in 1855 in order to dedicate himself entirely to photography. He journeyed to the Middle East on three occasions, the first of which was a trip to Egypt in 1856 with very large cameras (16" x 20"). He used the collodion process, a major technical achievement in hot and dusty conditions. More on Francis Frith

Pascal Sebah
The Sphynx
Photograph

The Great Sphinx of Giza: (The Terrifying One; literally: Father of Dread), commonly referred to as the Sphinx of Giza or just the Sphinx, is a limestone statue of a reclining sphinx, a mythical creature with the body of a lion and the head of a human. Facing directly from West to East, it stands on the Giza Plateau on the west bank of the Nile in Giza, Egypt. The face of the Sphinx is generally believed to represent the Pharaoh Khafre.

Cut from the bedrock, the original shape of the Sphinx has been restored with layers of blocks. It measures 73 metres (240 ft) long from paw to tail, 20.21 m (66.31 ft) high from the base to the top of the head and 19 metres (62 ft) wide at its rear haunches. It is the oldest known monumental sculpture in Egypt and is commonly believed to have been built by ancient Egyptians of the Old Kingdom during the reign of the Pharaoh Khafre (c. 2558–2532 BC). More on The Great Sphinx of Giza

Pascal Sébah (1823–1886) was a photographer in Constantinople (now Istanbul). He was born in Constantinople, then the capital of the Ottoman Empire, to a Syrian Catholic father and an Armenian mother. In 1857 he opened his first photography studio in Constantinople in the center of the city. By 1873 he was successful enough to open another studio in Cairo. He worked with Turkish painter Osman Hamdi Bey and exhibited at the 1873 Ottoman exhibition in Vienna, Austria.

After he died on 25 June 1886, the studio was managed by his brother Cosmi until Pascal's son, Jean Pascal Sébah, joined in 1888 and went on to run the studio. More on Pascal Sébah

Francis Frith, (1822-1898)

King Senefru Bent Pyramid at Dahshur, ca.1870

Photographic Illustrations of the Egypt

The Bent Pyramid, also known as the Rhomboidal or Blunted Pyramid, attests to an even greater increase in architectural innovations. As the name suggests, the angle of the inclination changes from 55° to about 43° in the upper levels of the pyramid. It is likely that the pyramid initially was not designed to be built this way, but was modified during construction due to unstable accretion layers. As a means of stabilising the structure, the top layers were laid horizontally, marking the abandonment of the step pyramid concept. More on the bent pyramid

Francis Frith, (1822-1898), see above

Francis Bedford, (1815-94) (photographer)
Mosque of Mehemet Ali [Mosque of Muhammad Ali, Cairo]
8 March 1862
Albumen print, mounted on card
24.8 x 29.5 cm
Acquired by the Prince of Wales (later King Edward VII), 1862
Royal Collection Trust, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, 2014

The Great Mosque of Muhammad Ali Pasha or Alabaster Mosque is a mosque situated in the Citadel of Cairo in Egypt and commissioned by Muhammad Ali Pasha between 1830 and 1848.

Situated on the summit of the citadel, this Ottoman mosque, the largest to be built in the first half of the 19th century, is, with its animated silhouette and twin minarets, the most visible mosque in Cairo.

The mosque was built in memory of Tusun Pasha, Muhammad Ali's oldest son, who died in 1816.

This mosque, along with the citadel, is one of the landmarks and tourist attractions of Cairo and is one of the first features to be seen when approaching the city any direction. More on the Mosque of Muhammad Ali

Francis Bedford, (1815-94), see above

Unknown
View of the Tombs of the Memlook Kings, Cairo, Egypt
7.75 x 4.2 inches
From the collection of Dr Paula Sanders, Rice University

Francis Bedford, (1815-94) (photographer)
Tombs of the Memlooks at Cairo [Mausoleum and Khanqah of Emir Qawsun]
25 Mar 1862
Albumen print, mounted on card
24.1 x 29.0 cm
Acquired by the Prince of Wales (later King Edward VII), 1862
Royal Collection Trust/© Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II 2014

ANOTHER of those picturesque but nameless mosque-tombs which are scattered over that part of the Desert which lies just without the walls of Cairo and forms its necropolis. Raised at a great cost by the caliph, or the bey for his tomb, it sometimes happened that he never rested there; but found in the utter want of protection for life and property under such governments as have cursed Egypt, a more ignoble and dishonoured grave, with no one to inherit, for none ventured to claim the dangerous honour of being his successor: his name was soon forgotten and his mosque-tomb left to fall into decay, like the dust of the common inhabitants of the earth around him. More on Tombs of the Memlooks

Francis Bedford, (1815-94), see above

Please visit my other blogs: Art Collector, Mythology, Marine Art, Portrait of a Lady, The Orientalist, Art of the Nude and The Canals of Venice, Middle East Artists, 365 Saints and 365 Days, also visit my Boards on Pinterest

Images are copyright of their respective owners, assignees or others. Some Images may be subject to copyright

I don't own any of these images - credit is always given when due unless it is unknown to me. if I post your images without your permission, please tell me.

I do not sell art, art prints, framed posters or reproductions. Ads are shown only to compensate the hosting expenses.

If you enjoyed this post, please share with friends and family.

Thank you for visiting my blog and also for liking its posts and pages.

Please note that the content of this post primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online.

01 Painting, Streets of Paris, by the artists of the time, Part 23 - With Footnotes

Constantin Kluge, French, 1912-2003

Place des Vosges

Oil on canvas

35 x 45 3/4 inches (88.9 x 116.2 cm)

Private collection

The Place des Vosges, originally Place Royale, is the oldest planned square in Paris. It is located in the Marais district, and it straddles the dividing-line between the 3rd and 4th arrondissements of Paris. It was a fashionable and expensive square to live in during the 17th and 18th centuries, and one of the central reasons Le Marais became so fashionable for the Parisian nobility.

Originally known as the Place Royale, the Place des Vosges was built by Henri IV from 1605 to 1612. A true square (140 m × 140 m), it embodied the first European program of royal city planning. It was built on the site of the Hôtel des Tournelles and its gardens: at a tournament at the Tournelles, a royal residence, Henri II was wounded and died. Catherine de Medicis had the Gothic complex demolished, and she moved to the Louvre Palace. More on The Place des Vosges

Constantin Kluge (1912–2003) was an award winning painter originally from Russia. Raised mostly in Manchuria and Beijing, Kluge eventually settled in Paris and became a French citizen. He is known for his French landscapes and romantic scenes of Paris.

Kluge was born into a family of means and some status. His paternal grandfather had spent years in France studying the cultivation of vines and wine making. Returning to Russia he developed a successful winery. Kluge's father, also Constantin, was a member of the Russian Army General Staff and a White Army sympathizer. Kluge's mother, Liouba Ignatieva, was an academic who also came from a military family. When his parents met, young Liouba was serving as tutor to the children of Russian Grand Duke Michel, the younger brother of Czar Nicholas II. The family moved often, following Constantin Sr.'s deployments with the counter rebellion armies. Each move seemed to take the family further and further east as the revolution spread and the White Sympathizers controlled a decreasing part of the country.

Kluge settled in Paris in 1950 and soon thereafter found representation in a French gallery on Rue Saint-Honore. In 1964 he became a citizen of France. He died on 9 January 2003 in France. More on Constantin Kluge

Images are copyright of their respective owners, assignees or others. Some Images may be subject to copyright

We do not sell art, art prints, framed posters or reproductions. Ads are shown only to compensate the hosting expenses.

If you enjoyed this post, please share with friends and family.

01 Painting, Streets of Paris, by the artists of the time, Part 20 - With Footnotes

Andre Hambourg, 1909-1999 (French)

Dans les Jardins du Luxembourg, 1961

oil on canvas

h:20 w: 50 cm.

Private collection

Le Jardin du Luxembourg, or the Luxembourg Garden, located in the 6th arrondissement of Paris, was created beginning in 1612 by Marie de' Medici, the widow of King Henry IV of France, for a new residence she constructed, the Luxembourg Palace. The garden today is owned by the French Senate, which meets in the Palace. It covers 23 hectares and is known for its lawns, tree-lined promenades, flowerbeds, model sailboats on its circular basin, and picturesque Medici Fountain, built in 1620. More on Le Jardin du Luxembourg

André Hambourg (5 May 1909 - 4 December 1999) was a French impressionist, whose numerous works have earned international acclaim. His romantic compositions of Venice, luminous seascapes, and charming beach scenes, are synonymous with the highest standards of French painting.

André Hambourg was born in Paris on 5 May 1909. Entering the Ecole Nationale Superieure des Arts Decoratifs in 1926, he studied sculpture under Paul Niclausse for four years. The young artist then entered the studio of Lucien Simon at the École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts. While in the middle of his academic studies, Hambourg had his debut solo exhibition at the Galerie Taureau in Paris in 1928. He was only 19 years old at the time. Because of the early recognition of his talent, Hambourg became active in the important Paris salons in the first stages of his developing career. In 1931, he was made a member of the Salon de l’Art Français Indépendant and the Salon de l’Oeuvre Unique. More on André Hambourg

Images are copyright of their respective owners, assignees or others

We do not sell art, art prints, framed posters or reproductions. Ads are shown only to compensate the hosting expenses.

If you enjoyed this post, please share with friends and family.

01 Painting, Streets of Paris, by the artists of the time, Part 24 - With Footnotes

Edouard Henri Leon Cortès, (French, 1882-1969)

Place de la République at night

Oil on canvas

54 x 81cm (21 1/4 x 31 7/8in).

Private collection

The Place de la République is a square in Paris, located on the border between the 3rd, 10th and 11th arrondissements. It is named after the French Republic and was called the Place du Château-d'Eau until 1879. The Métro station of République lies beneath the square.

The square was originally called the Place du Château d'Eau, named after a huge fountain designed by Pierre-Simon Girard and built on the site in 1811. Émile de La Bédollière wrote that the water came from la Villette and that the fountain was "superb" in character. In 1867, Gabriel Davioud built a more impressive fountain in the square, which (like the first fountain) was decorated with lions. The square took its current shape as part of Baron Hausmann's vast renovation of Paris. More The Place de la République

Edouard Léon Cortès (1882–1969) was a French post-impressionist artist of French and Spanish ancestry. He is known as "Le Poete Parisien de la Peinture" or "the Parisian Poet of Painting" because of his diverse Paris cityscapes in a variety of weather and night settings. Cortes was born in Lagny-sur-Marne, about twenty miles east of Paris. His father, Antonio Cortès, had been a painter for the Spanish Royal Court.

Although Cortès was a pacifist, when war came close to his native village he was compelled to enlist in a French Infantry Regiment at the age of 32. As a contact agent Cortès was wounded by a bayonet, evacuated to a military hospital, and awarded the Croix de Guerre. After recovery he was the reassigned to utilize his artistic talent to sketch enemy positions. Later in life his convictions led him to refuse the Légion d'Honneur from the French Government. In 1919 he was demobilized.

Cortès lived a simple life amid a close circle of friends. He died on November 28, 1969, in Lagny, and has a street named in his honor. More on Edouard Léon Cortès

01 Paintings, of The amorous game, Part 13 - With Footnotes

Pietro Torrini, (Italian, 1852-1920)

The rivals

Oil on canvas

103 x 121cm (40 9/16 x 47 5/8in)

Private collection

Pietro Torrini (Italian, 1852-1920) was born on New Year’s Day 1852 IN Florence, Tuscany and was to become a master of the 19th Century conversation piece in Italy
He was a prolific artist and is best known for his informal genre pieces often with a witty theme or anecdote.

He exhibited widely and his work became very popular with collectors of this genre and frequently appear on the art market especially in New York. More on Pietro Torrini

01 Paintings, of The amorous game, Part 12 - With Footnotes

Alvaro Guillot, Uruguayan, (1931 - 2010)

Do You Love Me, c.1979

Serigraph

30 in. x 23 in. (76.2 cm x 58.42 cm)

Private Collection

Alvaro Guillot (1931–2010) was a French artist born in Uruguay. He was a notable exponent of the "new surrealist school".

Guillot's post-surrealist late 20th and early 21st century acrylics and oils celebrated New Mexico landscapes, cats, horses, bovines, stunted juniper upllands, prominent green, red and yellow chili peppers, with color schemes and adroit shadows that defied all previous Western landscape artistic visions; borrowing from none, embracing something altogether new and intoxicating. There are vestiges of his early years in South America, but also the best of mid-century Paris, and contemporary Cuban art.

Guillot remained a quiet presence for over two decades in Santa Fe, New Mexico, shunning exhibitions and most galleries, preferring the sheer joys of privacy amongst a select coterie of like-minded friends, most notably, Jean Morrison.

Known by his closest colleagues as one of the great raconteurs, satirists and political pundits he was also an exquisitely talented - but again, private - writer whose memoirs about such close friends of his as the great Salvador Dalí and architect, Le Corbusier, as well as Picasso, will soon be published.

Some of Guillot's exploits were fictionalized in the Michael Tobias novel, The Adventures of Mr Marigold (2005). More on Alvaro Guillot

01 Paintings, of The amorous game, Part 11 - With Footnotes

The Ecole de Fontainebleau, CIRCA 1600

The lovers

Oil on canvas

35 1/2 by 32 3/8 in.; 90 by 82 cm.

Private Collection

The Ecole de Fontainebleau (c.1530–c.1610) refers to two periods of artistic production in France during the late Renaissance centered on the royal Château de Fontainebleau, that were crucial in forming the French version of Northern Mannerism.

In 1531, the Florentine artist Rosso Fiorentino, having lost most of his possessions at the Sack of Rome in 1527, was invited by François I to come to France, where he began an extensive decorative program for the Château de Fontainebleau. In 1532 he was joined by another Italian artist, Francesco Primaticcio (from Bologna). On the advice of Primaticcio, Niccolò dell'Abbate (from Modena) was invited to France in 1552 by François's son Henri II. Although known for their work at Fontainebleau, these artists were also invited to create works of art for other noble families of the period and were much esteemed and well-paid.

The works of this "first school of Fontainebleau" are characterized by the extensive use of stucco and frescos, and an elaborate system of allegories and mythological iconography. Renaissance decorative motifs such as grotesques, strapwork and putti are common, as well as a certain degree of eroticism. The figures are elegant and show the influence of the techniques of the Italian Mannerism of Michelangelo, Raphael and especially Parmigianino. Primaticcio was also directed to make copies of antique Roman statues for the king, thus spreading the influence of classical statuary. Many of the works of Rosso, Primaticcio and dell'Abate have not survived; parts of the Chateau were remodelled at various dates. The paintings of the group were reproduced in prints, mostly etchings, which were apparently produced initially at Fontainebleau itself, and later in Paris. These disseminated the style through France and beyond, and also record several paintings that have not survived.

The mannerist style of the Fontainebleau school influenced French artists (with whom the Italians worked) such as the painter Jean Cousin the Elder, the sculptors Jean Goujon and Germain Pilon, and, to a lesser degree, the painter and portraitist François Clouet the son of Jean Clouet. More on The Ecole de Fontainebleau

01 Painting, Streets of Paris, by the artists of the time, Part 22 - With Footnotes

Eugène Galien-Laloue, (French, 1854-1941)

Le Quai de la Seine

Gouache

26 x 44.5cm (10 1/4 x 17 1/2in).

Private collection

The Seine is an important commercial waterway within the Paris Basin, flowing through Paris and into the English Channel at Le Havre.

It’s impossible to miss the old barges that are lined up along the banks of the Seine. Also known as self-propelled barges, these boat-homes are an original way of living at the heart of the capital that allows owners to benefit from one of the most beautiful settings Paris has to offer. More on Le Quai de la Seine

Eugène Galien-Laloue (1854–1941) was a French artist of French-Italian parents and was born in Paris on December 11, 1854. He was a populariser of street scenes, usually painted in autumn or winter. His paintings of the early 1900s accurately represent the era in which he lived: a happy, bustling Paris, la Belle Époque, with horse-drawn carriages, trolley cars and its first omnibuses. Galien-Laloue's works are valued not only for their contribution to 20th-century art, but for the actual history, which they document. His work can be seen at the Musée des Beaux-Arts, Louvier; Musée des Beaux-Arts, La Rochelle; Mulhouse, France.

A typical Galien-Laloue painting depicts sidewalks and avenues crowded with people or tourists mingling before the capital's monuments. He also painted the landscapes of Normandy and Seine-et-Marne, as well as military scenes he was commissioned to produce in 1914. The Republic of France selected Galien-Laloue to work as a 'war artist,' both during the Franco-Prussian War and World War I, chiefly in watercolor. More on Eugène Galien-Laloue

01 Painting of The amorous game, William Holman Hunt's The Awakening Conscience, Part 9 - With Footnotes

William Holman Hunt, 1827–1910

The Awakening Conscience, c. 1853

Oil paint on canvas

762 x 559 mm

Tate

A gentleman has installed his mistress (known to be such because of her absence of a wedding ring) in a house for their meetings. As they play and singt, she has a sudden spiritual revelation. Rising from her lover's lap, she gazes into the sunlit garden beyond, which is reflected in the mirror behind her. The mirror image represents the woman's lost innocence, but redemption, indicated by the ray of light in the foreground, is still possible. Intended to be 'read', the painting is full of such symbolic elements. The cat toying with the broken-winged bird under the table symbolises the woman's plight. A man's discarded glove warns that the likely fate of a cast-off mistress was prostitution.

The underlying spiritual message was generally ignored by most critics, who concentrated instead on the more sensational aspects of the composition. The model is Hunt's girlfriend Annie Miller, an uneducated barmaid whom he met in 1850 when she was fifteen. More on this painting

William Holman Hunt OM (2 April 1827 – 7 September 1910) was an English painter and one of the founders of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood. His paintings were notable for their great attention to detail, vivid color, and elaborate symbolism. These features were influenced by the writings of John Ruskin and Thomas Carlyle, according to whom the world itself should be read as a system of visual signs. For Hunt it was the duty of the artist to reveal the correspondence between sign and fact. Of all the members of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, Hunt remained most true to their ideals throughout his career. He was always keen to maximize the popular appeal and public visibility of his works. More on William Holman Hunt

Please visit my other blogs: Art Collector, Mythology, Marine Art, Portrait of a Lady, The Orientalist, Art of the Nude and The Canals of Venice, Middle East Artists, 365 Saints, 365 Days, and Biblical Icons, also visit my Boards on Pinterest and my art stores at deviantart and Aaroko

Images are copyright of their respective owners, assignees or others. Some Images may be subject to copyright

I don't own any of these images - credit is always given when due unless it is unknown to me. if I post your images without your permission, please tell me.

Ads are shown only to compensate the hosting expenses.

If you enjoyed this post, please share with friends and family.

Thank you for visiting my blog and also for liking its posts and pages.

Please note that the content of this post primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online.

01 Painting, Streets of Paris, by the artists of the time, Part 21 - With Footnotes

Eugène Galien-Laloue, (French, 1854-1941)

La fontaine du Palmier, place du Châtelet

Gouache

26 x 44.5cm (10 1/4 x 17 1/2in).

Private collection

The Fontaine du Palmier (1806-1808) or Fontaine de la Victoire is a monumental fountain located in the Place du Châtelet, between the Théâtre du Châtelet and the Théâtre de la Ville, in the First Arrondissement of Paris. It was designed to provide fresh drinking water to the population of the neighborhood and to commemorate the victories of Napoleon Bonaparte. It is the largest fountain built during Napoleon's reign still in existence. More on The Fontaine du Palmier

01 Paintings, Streets of Rome, 20th Century, by the Artists of the time, with footnotes. 3

Edward Seago, R.W.S., 1910-1974

THE PIAZZA NAVONA, ROME

Oil on canvas

66 by 91.5cm., 26 by 36in.

Private Collection

Piazza Navona is a square in Rome, Italy. It is built on the site of the Stadium of Domitian, built in the 1st century AD, and follows the form of the open space of the stadium. The ancient Romans went there to watch the games, and hence it was known as "Circus Agonalis". It is believed that over time the name changed to in avone to navone and eventually to navona.

Defined as a public space in the last years of 15th century, when the city market was transferred there from the Campidoglio, Piazza Navona was transformed into a highly significant example of Baroque Roman architecture and art during the pontificate of Innocent X, who reigned from 1644 until 1655, and whose family palace, the Palazzo Pamphili, faced the piazza.

During its history, the piazza has hosted theatrical events and other ephemeral activities. From 1652 until 1866, when the festival was suppressed, it was flooded on every Saturday and Sunday in August in elaborate celebrations of the Pamphilj family. The pavement level was raised in the 19th century, and in 1869 the market was moved to the nearby Campo de' Fiori. A Christmas market is held in the piazza square. More on Piazza Navona

Edward Brian Seago, 1910–1974; was a British painter, writer, and illustrator, born in Norwich. He was confined to bed for much of his childhood, had little formal education, and was mainly self-taught as an artist. From 1928 to 1933 he travelled with circuses in Britain and abroad, and he wrote three illustrated books on the circus in the 1930s. However, he became best known for landscapes and portraits.

During the Second World War he served as a camouflage officer and after being invalided from the army in 1944 he was invited by Field Marshal Alexander to paint scenes of the Italian campaign in 1945. In 1953 he was appointed an official Coronation artist and in 1956–7 he accompanied the Duke of Edinburgh on a world tour. More Seago

Subscribe