Bernard’s tonal drawing depicts a street scene in Cairo. The composition flows in a diagonal direction, from the seated bread sellers in the lower left to the archway and mounted figure in the center right. The female vendors, draped in hijabs and heavy robes, dominate the scene. This illustration of daily life is part of the many images Bernard made during his time in Cairo in the 1890s. His scene differs from the many colorful Orientalist paintings by other nineteenth-century French artists. Rather than using vibrant hues to depict his subjects, Bernard employs the technique of cloisonnism—heavy black ink outlines of his figures’ simplified forms. Signed “Emile Bernard” in the lower left.

written by Emma Lyandres, St. Andrews University, Scotland, 2022