Leaving the Oasis

1880s

Jean-Léon Gérôme

(French, 1824–1904)

Culture

France, 19th century

Medium

oil on wood panel

Measurements

Framed: 67.3 x 98.4 x 9.5 cm (26 1/2 x 38 3/4 x 3 3/4 in.); Unframed: 50 x 81.2 cm (19 11/16 x 31 15/16 in.)

Credit Line

Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Noah L. Butkin 1977.126

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Location

Not on view

Description

Leaving the Oasis repeats several themes in Gérôme's art—camel caravans, oases, and expansive desert landscapes. As an academic realist, Gérôme painted everyday scenes in a meticulous and polished style. Here he carefully rendered the unique forms of the figures' dress and the camels' physical features, as well as the colors of the changing sky and the violet shadows cast by the airborne dogs and the legs of the camels. Although the picture's smoothness and detail suggest a photographic image, Gérôme actually composed his paintings in the studio, basing them on memories and sketches from his visits to the Near East. Following his first trip to Egypt in 1856, he developed into a major figure among 19th-century "Orientalists"—artists who specialized in representing Near Eastern life, culture, and landscapes.