Seated Arab with Pipe
c. 1864
Medium
etching on laid paper
Dimensions
plate: 12.5 x 9.9 cm (4 15/16 x 3 7/8 in.) sheet: 26.4 x 17.4 cm (10 3/8 x 6 7/8 in.)
Classification
Department
CG-E
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Gift of Frank Anderson Trapp
Accession Number
1999.111.21
Art Historical Context
Jean-Léon Gérôme’s *Seated Arab with Pipe* (c. 1864) captures a quiet moment of contemplation in a compact etching measuring just 12.5 by 9.9 centimeters. Created on laid paper, the print demonstrates Gérôme’s precise draftsmanship, a hallmark of his academic training and meticulous realist approach. Though small in scale, the work conveys a sense of intimacy and observation typical of the artist’s studies from life. Gérôme, a leading figure of 19th-century French academic art, frequently explored North African and Middle Eastern subjects after his travels in the region. This etching reflects...
About the Artist
Jean-Léon Gérôme
Gérôme's father, a goldsmith from Vesoul, discouraged his son from studying to become a painter but agreed, reluctantly, to allow him a trial period in the studio of Paul Delaroche in Paris. He traveled and studied in Italy, elsewhere in Europe, and in Asia Minor. The subjects that he enjoyed most were scenes of nature and animals. He is best known for mythological and Comment on works: history pa...