Artwork Page for Arab Musicians

Details / Information for Arab Musicians

Arab Musicians

1864

Ludovico Wolfgang Hart

(British)
Culture
England, 19th century
Medium
albumen print from wet collodion negative
Measurements
Image: 21.9 x 17.9 cm (8 5/8 x 7 1/16 in.); Matted: 50.8 x 40.6 cm (20 x 16 in.)
Credit Line
John L. Severance Fund 1995.236
Public Domain
You can copy, modify, and distribute this work, all without asking permission. Learn more about CMA's Open Access Initiative.
Location
Not on view
Print

Description

Taken to catalogue and document cultural practices, both of these photographs were intended as portraits of professions or ethnographic types rather than portraits of individuals. Hart’s image was part of his subscription series Universal Gallery of Peoples, which sought “to reproduce through photography the national costumes that are disappearing rapidly before the advance of civilization, to preserve for people the flavor, and for artists the memory of what once was beautiful and picturesque.” An unidentified photographer captured the picturesque pifferari, country musicians who wandered European cities around Christmas playing before images of the Virgin and on the streets. They were a common theme for French and Italian painters and photographers in the 1840s and 1850s.
A vertically oriented sepia-toned photograph depicts four men with medium skin tones seated before a massive prickly pear cactus. On our left, a man plays a bowed stringed instrument. At center, another man rests a large stringed instrument across his lap. To our right, one man holds a tambourine while another sits cross-legged playing small drums. They all wear turbans and fur-collared coats while gathered on a rug.

Arab Musicians

1864

Ludovico Wolfgang Hart

(British)
England, 19th century

See Also

Visually Similar by AI

Contact Us

The information about this object, including provenance, may not be currently accurate. If you notice a mistake or have additional information about this object, please fill out the appropriate request form linked below:

Update or Correct Artwork Information

Imagery or Rights for Non-Open-Access Artworks

Report a Website Issue

Further Questions About This Artwork