Sébastien Charles Giraud

In this picture of serene tranquility, two women while away the heat of the day in a sumptuous Cairene house, behind an exquisitely carved mashrabiya screen with a flap allowing a glimpse down on to the street. The rich colours and textures of the women’s silk robes, the upholstered divan, the curtains, and the carpet and animal skin combine to create an ambiance of hushed opulence. Giraud was in Cairo at exactly the time the leading British Orientalist painter John Frederick Lewis was living there – whether the two men met is not known, however the subject and atmosphere of the present work come close to Lewis’s depictions of women in Cairo interiors.

Giraud belonged to the earlier generation of French Orientalists and was among the first to travel to Egypt. He won the Prix de Rome for engraving in 1826, but soon abandoned this medium for painting. In 1846 he accompanied novelists and playwrights Alexandre Dumas père and Alexandre Dumas fils, Dumas père’s collaborator Auguste Maquet, and the painter Louis Boulanger to Andalusia and Tunis. Giraud continued on on his own to Cairo, bringing back costumes and numerous sketches from his journey. He exhibited at the Paris Salon for over 35 years, starting in 1831; his submission to the 1866 Salon, Dancing Girl in Cairo, was acquired by the Musée du Luxembourg.