Arabs Watering Their Horses

Arabs Watering Their Horses (1872) by Eugène Fromentin, now in the collection of Clark Art Institute, demonstrates the artist's ability to depict animals with naturalistic accuracy, working within the strong tradition of animal painting that formed a significant genre in 19th-century European art. Eugène Fromentin was both a distinguished Orientalist painter and an important art critic — his book Les maîtres d'autrefois remains a significant work of art history. His paintings of Algeria and Egypt, the result of three extended visits to North Africa, captured the light, color, and movement of Arab life with a poetic quality that distinguished him from more sensationalist Orientalists.

Fromentin captured North African light with a warm, golden palette dominated by ochres, tawny browns, and dusty blues. His handling is fluid and confident, rendering the movement of horses and figures with the assurance of an experienced observer.