Otto Pilny, (Swiss artist; 1866-1936)
The Slave Market, c. 1910
Oil on canvas
520 x 347 mm, 20.5 x 13.6 in
Private collection
In an art historical context, Harem scenes depicted domestic spaces for the women in the Muslim societies, the males were only included in barbaric and sexual relations. This painting presents an unspecific Middle Eastern or North African setting in which a man inspects a nude, female slave. Women were depicted with a passive sexuality, while the men were depicted as violent and disrespectful towards women. More on this painting
Otto Pilny was a Swiss painter. He was born in 1866 in Budweis and died in 1936 in Zürich. He began his artistic education in Prague and lived in Vienna for a time before ultimately settling in Zurich. He travelled to Egypt twice, making his first visit in 1875 where he stayed for two years. He was so captivated by the landscape, people and their mores that he spent the rest of his career painting Orientalist works. He was particularly taken by the Bedouin customs and often travelled with them into the desert where he could sketch the evening entertainment which he would later use on his massive canvases. His second visit to the East was from 1889 to 1892. It was at this time that his work pleased the King of Egypt, Abbas II, and he was asked to decorate the order of the Medjidije. More Otto Pilny
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