Orientalism, as conceptualized by Edward Said, is based on a binary way of thinking that radically pits the West against the East. Far from being a neutral representation, it functions as a projection of Western fantasy designed to produce and reproduce a biased understanding of otherness, in the service of political, economic and cultural domination. Following the imperialist dynamics of the European powers and after the loss of its last overseas colonies, Spain turned its expansionist ambitions towards North Africa. To legitimize these military campaigns and garner support for them, the dissemination of a deeply negative image of ‘the Moor’ was intensified, reviving and updating all the denigrating myths of earlier eras.
Visual and cultural outputs multiplied exponentially, cementing highly pronounced archetypes. The Moor is repeatedly portrayed as an irrational, violent, fanatical, treacherous and lecherous being, with exaggerated sexuality and homosexual tendencies. The Moorish woman is depicted as submissive and hypersexualized, reinforcing the fetishistic stereotype of the harem.
In short, the image or representation we see in the painting is revealed to be a pure product of Western fantasy. A creation by Francesc Masriera, an artist belonging to the group of Orientalist painters who never actually set foot in “Orient”.
