Edwin Lord Weeks (18491903) was an American artist, noted for his Orientalist works.

Life

Weeks was born in Boston, Massachusetts in 1849. His parents were affluent spice and tea merchants from

Newton Newton most commonly refers to: * Isaac Newton (1642–1726/1727), English scientist * Newton (unit), SI unit of force named after Isaac Newton Newton may also refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Newton'' (film), a 2017 Indian film * Newton ( ...

, a suburb of Boston, and as such they were able to finance their son's youthful interest in painting and travelling. As a young man Weeks visited the

Florida Keys The Florida Keys are a coral cay archipelago located off the southern coast of Florida, forming the southernmost part of the continental United States. They begin at the southeastern coast of the Florida peninsula, about south of Miami, and e ...

to draw, and also travelled to

Surinam Surinam may refer to: * Surinam (Dutch colony) (1667–1954), Dutch plantation colony in Guiana, South America * Surinam (English colony) (1650–1667), English short-lived colony in South America * Surinam, alternative spelling for Suriname ...

in South America. His earliest known paintings date from 1867 when he was eighteen years old, although it is not until his ''Landscape with Blue Heron'', dated 1871 and painted in the

Everglades The Everglades is a natural region of tropical climate, tropical wetlands in the southern portion of the U.S. state of Florida, comprising the southern half of a large drainage basin within the Neotropical realm. The system begins near Orland ...

, that Weeks started to exhibit a dexterity of technique and eye for composition—presumably having taken professional tuition. In 1872 Weeks relocated to Paris, becoming a pupil of

Léon Bonnat Léon Joseph Florentin Bonnat (20 June 1833 – 8 September 1922) was a French painter, Grand Officer of the Légion d'honneur and professor at the Ecole des Beaux Arts. Early life Bonnat was born in Bayonne, but from 1846 to 1853 he lived in Ma ...

and Jean-Léon Gérôme. After his studies in Paris, Weeks emerged as one of

America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

's major painters of Orientalist subjects. Throughout his adult life he was an inveterate traveler and journeyed to South America (1869), Egypt and Persia (1870), Morocco (frequently between 1872 and 1878), and India (1882–83). In 1895 Weeks wrote and illustrated a book of travels, ''From the Black Sea through Persia and India'', and in 1897 he published ''Episodes of Mountaineering'' (which was preceded by the 1894 article ''Some Episodes of Mountaineering, by a Casual Amateur''). Weeks died in Paris in November 1903. He was a member of the Légion d'honneur, France, an officer of the Order of Saint Michael (Bavaria), and a member of the Munich Secession.

Achievements

Weeks exhibited his work in nearly every annual Salon (Paris). He earned a Medal of Honor in 1884, then a Third Class Medal in 1889, followed by a gold medal at the 1889 International Exhibition, and finally the Legion of Honor in 1896.

Gallery

File:Leaving For The Hunt At Gwalior ca 1887.jpg, A Maratha, leaving for hunting from Gwalior Fort File:The Maharahaj of Gwalior Before His Palace ca 1887.jpg, Maratha king of Gwalior at his palace File:An Indian Hunting Party.jpg, A Maratha hunting party File:Edwin Lord Weeks Promenade on an Indian Street.jpg, Promenade on a Maratha street File:The Barge Of The Maharaja Of Benares ca 1883.jpg, Barge of the Maharaja Of Benares, 1883 File:On The River Benares ca 1883.jpg, On The River Benares, 1883 File:Edwin_Lord_Weeks_-_Along_the_Ghats,_Mathura.jpg, Along the Ghats of Mathura, 1883 File:The Rajah, At The Palace Of Amber ca 1888.jpg, The Maharajah at the Amer Fort, 1888 File:Great Mogul And His Court Returning From The Great Mosque At Delhi India - Oil Painting by American Artist Edwin Lord Weeks.jpg, The Great Mughal And His Court Returning From The Great Mosque At Delhi India File:Weeks Edwin Lord An Open-Air Restaurant Lahore.jpg, An Open-Air Restaurant near Wazir Khan Mosque, Lahore File:Weeks Edwin Lord Royal Elephant.jpg, Royal Elephant at the Gateway to the

Jama Masjid, Mathura The Jama Mosque (''Masjid'') is a 17th-century congregational mosque in Mathura, Uttar Pradesh, India. It was built by Abd-al-Nabi Khan, governor of Mathura during the reign of Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb. History The Jama Masjid was commissione ...

File:Weeks Edwin Entering The Mosque 1885.jpg, Entering the Mosque, 1885 File:Edwin Lord Weeks - Interior of a Mosque at Cordova - Walters 37169.jpg, ''Interior of a Mosque at Cordova'' (circa 1880), The Walters Art Museum File:Edwin Lord Weeks - The Taj Mahal - Walters 37316.jpg, ''The Taj Mahal'', 1883, The Walters Art Museum File:Weeks Edwin Lord Arrival of a Caravan Outside The City of Morocco.jpg, Arrival of a Caravan Outside the City of Morocco

References

Sources

* Edwin Lord Weeks
"Hindoo and Moslem"
''Harper's New Monthly Magazine'', Vol. 91, No. 545, October 1895, pp. 651–669.

External links