Colonization and Art 1875-1910
Art that originated in North Africa in the late 19th/early 20th century is virtually nonexistent. Most art originated in other countries and was brought over with immigration, or colonization, like in North Africa. Geographically, north of Ethiopia is what we are considering North Africa. During the time frame 1875-1910, sculpture art was already a popular type of art. Prior to this time, any other kind of art that was prevalent, wasn’t popular. It was around 1875 that art started to take off. This is contributed to “The Scramble” for Africa. The Scramble is appropriately named for the many Europeans scrambling to claim land in Africa. This colonization is what brought many French and European artists over. After any European powers won fight for land, the amount of foreign artists in Africa increased immensely. Subsequently, European easel paintings, such as Impressionism and Orientalism, were introduced and artist societies were founded. In the second half of the 19th century, French Impressionists, including Claude Monet and August Renoir, visit Algeria and display their work. This is when art started to become more heavily displayed and publicized. Another prominent artist, Alphonse-Etienne Dinet (1861-1929) heavily influence Western Orientalist art. These French and European artists brought over there works and displayed them at government sanctioned exhibits, or salons, and world fairs for people to see. This is how there influence spread so rapidly in North Africa.