Eugene Fromentin - The Banks of the Nile [1874]

Eugene Fromentin - The Banks of the Nile [1874], a photo by Gandalf's Gallery on Flickr.

Fromentin's full name was Eugène-Samuel-Auguste Fromentin-Dupeux. He specialised in African scenes, and was the author of a celebrated book on Dutch and Flemish painting, 'Les Maîtres d'Autrefois' ('The Old Masters', 1876). He exhibited at the Salon from 1847. Fromentin was a prolific and popular painter of 'orientalist' scenes, set mostly in North Africa. He provided a European clientele with images of an exotic but reassuringly recognisable way of life, as in this placid scene of shipping along the River Nile.

[Oil on canvas, 54 x 78.7 cm]