Robert George Talbot Kelly: A Painter of the Desert Soul Robert George Talbot Kelly (1861-1934) emerges from the late 19th and early 20th centuries as a singular voice in Orientalist art, a painter who transcended mere depiction to capture the very essence of North Africa, the Middle East, and Burma. Born in Cheshire, England, into a family steeped in artistic tradition – his grandfather was the celebrated Irish landscape painter Robert George Kelly – Kelly’s journey led him far from the familiar landscapes of Britain to the sun-drenched deserts and bustling marketplaces of the Orient. His w…