Orientalism is a term used by art historians, literary, geographers, and cultural studies scholars for the imitation or depiction of aspects in Middle Eastern, South Asian, African and East Asian cultures (Eastern cultures). These depictions are usually done by writers, designers, and artists from the West. In particular, Orientalist painting, depicting more specifically "the Middle East", was one of the many specialisms of 19th-century Academic art, and the literature of Western countries took a similar interest in Oriental themes.