The Sultan gives a concert in honor of his concubine

"The Sultan gives a concert in honor of his concubine" (French: Le Grand Turc donnant un concert à sa maîtresse) oil on canvas. 73 × 91 cm - painting by the French court artist Charles Andre Van Loo.
In the 1730s, Europeans began to take an interest in exotic Turkish culture. This painting, painted in 1737, is evidence of this interest. The Turkish style is becoming fashionable among the secular ladies of the time, since it allows one to afford that degree of nudity in portraits that would be unacceptable in more formal portrait images. However, their outfits were stylized and looked little like real Turkish clothing.
The painting depicts a pasha giving a concert for his beloved, who appears to be in the center of the painting. Almost all the characters, including the dog, are looking at the pasha. Turku play along with European musical instruments, which gives the scene a stage setting. Theatricality is also achieved through the interior - the group is in the empty space of a huge palace hall. Massive columns are a symbol of royalty.
It is known that the artist also placed his wife, an opera singer named Christina Antonia Somis, in the picture. She sings the then fashionable aria ‘Si caro, si’ from Handel’s opera Admeto. Contemporaries gave the singer the nickname "Filomela of Turin"
For some time, the canvas belonged to the Prussian king Frederick the Great and the Polish king Stanislav. It is currently in the British Wallace Collection.