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signed and dated F.A. Bridgman 1875 (lower right) oil on canvas 21 5/8 by 36 5/8 in. 54.9 by 93cm. Frederick Arthur Bridgman, along with fellow American artists such as Frederic Church and Edwin Lord Weeks (see lot 67) were among the few great American practitioners of the Orientalist genre. Their roles were critical in the formative years of Orientalism in America, the period between 1870-1880. The cult of the Orient culminated in the 19th century with the Chicago World's Fair of 1893, where the 'Orient' arrived in the form of fabricated, exotic, and so-called realistic villages. These popular exhibits showcased actual individuals wearing their supposed cultural dress, and artificially performing functions from their daily lives. Snake charmers, Algerian dancers, odalisques and turbaned Moors, graced the Exposition's halls in a fair that ultimately celebrated American might and prosperity. Bridgman's success and popularity led him to serve as a member of the Paris advisory committee for this exposition. Bridgman studied with Jean-Leon Gerome from 1866 to 1870, and in this early work of 1875, the influence of his teacher's tight, technically precisionist academic style clearly impacted Bridgman's visual language. In this virtuosic composition, the courtyard serves as a backdrop to the scene within, where Bridgman successfully depicts and seamlessly integrates a simultaneous narrative, while also meticulously rendering physiognomy, intricate architectural embellishments, as well as tactile fabrics and surfaces.