Orientalist Artworks to Obliterate the Algerian National Identity During the French occupation

Abstract

The French occupation of Algeria, with its varied landscapes of plains, plateaus, and deserts, made it appealing to Orientalist artists to travel there. Among the most prominent were the (French artist Eugène Delacroix, Étienne Dinet, and Pablo Picasso). They were chosen or commissioned to depict natural subjects and prevalent social aspects within Algerian society to distort and obliterate its national identity which is regarded as a fertile ground for artistic activity, and service to French colonialism.