Cserna, Károly A caravan on a road outside Cairo

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At the Mintarajz School (the Academy of Fine Arts), Károly Cserna studied under János Greguss, Bertalan Székely, and Károly Lotz. From 1889 he worked as an illustrator for Vasárnapi Újság. Beginning in 1903 he studied in Munich, and after returning home he created portraits and still lifes.

In 1905 he spent nearly two years in Egypt, where he was a guest of Countess Marianna Török, who had married the Khedive of Cairo—according to contemporary accounts. It was there that he produced his exotic paintings depicting the East, works that brought him great success.

The “Caravan with Cairo in the Background” also dates from this period. In this oil-on-canvas composition we observe a caravan setting out along a desert road. Men riding mules and a companion walking on foot travel forward. They have long since left the city behind, yet in the bluish background one can still discern domes and the towers of mosques, while the foreground is dominated by the reddish desert soil. In Cserna’s composition there is neither oasis nor palm tree, yet it clearly evokes the magical Orient. The work was created in the spirit of Orientalism. Orientalism refers to the science and art concerned with Eastern cultures; orientalist artists often turn to the exotic, distant East, frequently depicting Islamic and Asian themes.

Drawing from his Eastern experiences, Caravan with Cairo reflects a magical atmosphere. It leads the viewer into a world that appears unusual and mystical to the Western eye, while at the same time producing a strong sensual effect.

The scene of the slowly advancing caravan conveys a leisurely, stoic rhythm of life and the sense of coexistence with the stark landscape. The theme of wandering also serves as a symbol: life never stands still, it always moves forward.

The vivid, glowing Caravan with Cairo, a lifelike, classical composition, satisfies the eternal longing of ordinary people to discover other cultures.