6 Algiers as a Winter Residence. 



Amongst the other pictures by Mrs. Bridell, an " Arab Girl at 

 an Embroidery Frame/' the " Head of an Arab Girl, her hair 

 Dyed with Henna/' " Arab Musicians Chanting a Benediction 

 on the House of a Bride/' " Sidi Ben Oaissim taking Coffee/' 

 and an "Arab Woman by the Sea Shore," possess a high 

 degree of merit, and are likewise valuable as illustrating 

 picturesque forms of life. By a resolute perseverance in over- 

 coming difficulties, and with the friendly aid of the Duchess of 

 Magenta, who highly appreciated her labours, Mrs. Bridell saw 

 Arab and negro life in Algeria to an extent permitted to very 

 few strangers, and she succeeded in obtaining sitters in cases 

 where most artists who have made the attempt have failed. 

 The result is that she has returned from Algeria with materials 

 for very striking pictures, which our readers will no doubt find 

 opportunities of seeing. Sacred and secular associations — the 

 Bible and the Arabian Nights — give an undying charm to good 

 delineations of Eastern life, and in Mrs. Bridell's pictures we see 

 that combination of the actual with the ideal which proves the 

 artist to have felt and understood her theme. Madame Bodi- 

 chon's landscapes transport the spectator to the beautiful 

 scenery of Algeria, and amongst many of much merit, one 

 especially, a twilight scene, with a heron amongst tall rushes, 

 is remarkable for its harmonious colouring, and its exquisite 

 sensation of calmness and repose. In another piece, dark, 

 weird-looking cedars stand in a rolling sea of rising mist, with 

 very picturesque effect ; while other sketches show us " Algiers 

 from the Sea Shore," a wild romantic scene in Kabylia, etc. 

 The coast of Algiers, with its red rocks, bears some resem- 

 blance to parts of South Devon, but a peculiar and striking 

 character is given to the landscape by palms, cactuses, and 

 other plants foreign to the English eye. 



