Lot 206: Eugène Fromentin (La Rochelle 1820-1876 Saint-Maurice)

Eugène Fromentin (La Rochelle 1820-1876 Saint-Maurice)
Watering Horses, Egypt
signed and dated 'Eug. Fromentin.72' (lower right)
oil on panel
15¾ x 12½ in. (40 x 31.8 cm.)

Robert Cutting, New York.
R. Cutting Estate sale; New York, 22 March 1892 ($2,400).
Samuel P. Avery, 1892.
Sophia Harrington Bischof; Christie's, New York, 30 October 2002, lot 92, where
acquired by the present owner.

Like his contemporaries Jean-Léon Gérôme and Eugène Delacroix, Eugène Fromentin developed a fascination with northern Africa and the Near East early on in his life, which came to define his work as a painter. Fromentin's images of the people and places he discovered on his numerous trips to Algeria and Egypt captivated French audiences eager to know these distant lands. In addition to his painting, Fromentin's illustrated travel accounts, Un Eté dans le Sahara (1857) and Une Année dans le Sahel (1859), detailing his personal experiences among the Bedouins of northern Africa also brought the artist renown, and he eventually became recognized as one of the period's leading Orientalists.

James Thompson has confirmed the authenticity of this work.