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Lot Essay
Shortly after moving to Paris in 1874 to make a name for himself in the cultural capital, the American artist Edwin Lord Weeks ventured farther abroad to northern Africa. The French fascination with the Near East and Asia Minor fueled a growing demand for images of these seemingly exotic lands. Paintings by Weeks' contemporary Jean-Léon Gérôme, depicting the people and places he encountered on his eastern travels, were becoming increasingly popular. This French taste for foreign subjects, coupled with Weeks' own artistic curiosity, no doubt led to the ambitious young American's first foray into the East.
By the spring of 1875, Weeks was in Egypt and shortly thereafter in Morocco. These early travels proved inspirational for Weeks as he produced several monumental canvases of the camel caravans he observed in Morocco that were exhibited to great acclaim at the Paris Salons of 1878 and 1880. It was Weeks' extensive journeys throughout India in the 1880s and 1890s, however, that were the most formative for his oeuvre. The present painting originates from the artist's travels in Rajasthan. Based on his sketchbook drawings and photographs from India, A Wedding Procession before a Palace in Rajasthan captures the immediacy and intimacy of life in an intriguing, far away world, despite its being completed from the comfort of Weeks' Parisian studio. This celebratory subject in particular appealed to Weeks as the same carriage and festively dressed oxen appear in several other of his paintings. Striking for their exacting detail, these works seem as though they were painted right there in the blazing sun of Rajasthan. From the embroidered saddles and silver-plated harnesses of the oxen, to the elaborate dress of the dancing women and the intricate architectural details, Weeks created an impression of India that was simultaneously veristic and romantically alluring.
We are grateful to Dr. Ellen K. Morris for confirming the authenticity of this painting which will be included in her forthcoming Edwin Lord Weeks catalogue raisonné.
By the spring of 1875, Weeks was in Egypt and shortly thereafter in Morocco. These early travels proved inspirational for Weeks as he produced several monumental canvases of the camel caravans he observed in Morocco that were exhibited to great acclaim at the Paris Salons of 1878 and 1880. It was Weeks' extensive journeys throughout India in the 1880s and 1890s, however, that were the most formative for his oeuvre. The present painting originates from the artist's travels in Rajasthan. Based on his sketchbook drawings and photographs from India, A Wedding Procession before a Palace in Rajasthan captures the immediacy and intimacy of life in an intriguing, far away world, despite its being completed from the comfort of Weeks' Parisian studio. This celebratory subject in particular appealed to Weeks as the same carriage and festively dressed oxen appear in several other of his paintings. Striking for their exacting detail, these works seem as though they were painted right there in the blazing sun of Rajasthan. From the embroidered saddles and silver-plated harnesses of the oxen, to the elaborate dress of the dancing women and the intricate architectural details, Weeks created an impression of India that was simultaneously veristic and romantically alluring.
We are grateful to Dr. Ellen K. Morris for confirming the authenticity of this painting which will be included in her forthcoming Edwin Lord Weeks catalogue raisonné.