Prosper Marilhat

This 1835 portrait of Prosper Marilhat at the Louvre depicts the Orientalist landscape painter who traveled to Egypt and Syria in 1831–33 and produced some of the most accurate early depictions of Middle Eastern landscapes. Chassériau's portrait of Marilhat—painted when Chassériau was sixteen and Marilhat was already an exhibiting artist—documents the network of French Orientalist painters within which Chassériau moved even before his own 1846 Algerian journey. Marilhat's landscapes of Egypt would have been known to Chassériau from Salon exhibitions, and this early portrait suggests a personal connection that may have helped direct the younger painter toward North African subjects.

The portrait captures the fellow artist with directness and warmth, Chassériau's precise drawing and rich palette creating an image of creative temperament and Orientalist passion.