The Moroccan Sketchbook, 1832, marks a diversion, perhaps, for Delacroix from Paris and the life of a history painter, architectural painter, of historical and contemporary events (from the French revolution to popular news items), and literature. He travels to Spain and North Africa, the landscape, and the way of life.

Delacroix went "as part of a diplomatic mission to Morocco shortly after the French conquered Algeria. He eventually produced over 100 paintings and drawings of scenes from or based on the life of the people of North Africa, and added a new and personal chapter to the interest in Orientalism. Delacroix was entranced by the people and the costumes, and the trip would inform the subject matter of a great many of his future paintings. He believed that the North Africans, in their attire and their attitudes, provided a visual equivalent to the people of Classical Rome and Greece." - more here.

Watercolor on paper.

Artist: Eugene Delacroix.

CD: Eugene Delacroix: Le Voyage au Maroc (The Voyage to Morocco); Arborescence/Louvre/les films d’ici.