L'aiguiseur

While the life and work of Jean Discart remains poorly documented, the exquisite quality of his painterly technique and the acute sense of realism that he brought to his work placed him among the most important artists of the French Orientalist movement led by Jean-Léon Gérôme. Stimulated by his fascination with the Orient, Discart favoured the Moroccan people as the principal protagonists for his compositions. Intense studies of their culture enabled him to portray these people with the artefacts, colours, costumes and textures that constituted the daily richness of their traditional lifestyle. His commitment to detail together with the meticulous precision of his hand enabled him to capture these scenes, translating them onto the canvas with an instinctive sense of photographic realism. Here, L'aiguiseur, painted in rich deep colours, bathed in a golden light, seems to go about his trade with traditional care and dignity. Intent upon his task, the honest features of his face are skilfully enhanced by his bright red turban and waistcoat, traditional dress reflecting his pride in carrying out his expert trade on the stall in the hot, dusty surroundings. With such intricate detail and intensity of colour, it is no surprise the demand for paintings by the artist increased rapidly. Becoming attractive to both the Western and Arab markets, art enthusiasts were captivated by the exhilarating quality of representation capturing the daily life of past traditions.