Animalistic France
Jean-Victor Vincent Adam was a French painter and lithographer.
Adam came from a dynasty of artists and studied at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris. He painted views of various cities, including Russian Kazan and Yekaterinburg, as well as battle scenes from Napoleon's military campaigns. Collections of images of French military costumes prepared by Adam were published. His genre paintings with hunting scenes and animals are also known.
Jan Asselijn, known by his nickname Little Crab (Crabbetje, Krabbetje), was a French and Dutch painter of the Golden Age of Dutch painting.
As a child, Asselijn moved with his family from France to Amsterdam, studied and lived in Italy, where he became a member of the artists' society "Migratory Birds". And he received the nickname Crabbetje because of his physical features - small stature and a damaged arm.
Asselijn painted mainly scenes of horses, cavalry attacks and battles. His works also include genre works, landscapes and animals. Asselijn's most famous painting in this genre is The Frightened Swan, although it is also attributed allegorical meaning.
Charles Aubry was a French painter, illustrator and caricaturist who worked in Saumur from 1810-1840.
From 1817. Aubry made drawings and illustrations of military costume. He was soon recognized as one of the best lithographers and draughtsmen of military scenes, showing a particular talent for depicting cavalry. Charles Aubry's colored lithographs were published in a publication on the uniforms of the Swiss Royal Guard (Collection des Uniforms de l'Armee Francaise, 1823), as well as caricatures in the Comic Album de Pathologie (1823).
In 1822 Charles Aubry was appointed professor of art at l'Ecole Militaire de Saumur.
Jean-Jacques Bachelier was a French painter and innovator of porcelain and a member of the Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture.
Originally a still-life painter, he later became world-renowned for his significant contributions to applied art. In 1765, Bachelier founded an art and crafts school in Paris with his own funds. He was in charge of the painters at the porcelain manufactory in Vincennes, where figures were produced from unglazed porcelain - biscuit. For many years Bachelier was the Director of Sevres porcelain manufactory and in fact became the creator of the Sevres style.
Bachelier also conducted research on encaustic painting (a painting technique in which the binding substance of paints is wax) and published works on art education.
Jacques Barraband was a French zoological and botanical illustrator, renowned for his lifelike renderings of tropical birds. His pictures were based on mounted specimens and his illustration was considered the most accurate ones made during the early 1800s.
Rosa Bonheur, born Marie-Rosalie Bonheur, was a French artist known best as a painter of animals (animalière). She also made sculpture in a realist style. Her paintings include Ploughing in the Nivernais, first exhibited at the Paris Salon of 1848, and now in the Musée d'Orsay in Paris, and The Horse Fair, which was exhibited at the Salon of 1853 (finished in 1855) and is now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. Bonheur was widely considered to be the most famous female painter of the nineteenth century.
Félix Bracquemond was a French painter, etcher, and printmaker. He played a key role in the revival of printmaking, encouraging artists such as Édouard Manet, Edgar Degas and Camille Pissarro to use this technique.
Unusually for a prominent artist of this period, he also designed pottery for a number of French factories, in an innovative style that marks the beginning of Japonisme in France.
Jacques Raymond Brascassat was a French painter known for his landscapes and animal paintings.
Jacques Raymond Brascassat was a member of the Académie des Beaux-Arts since 1846. Among his pupils was Charles-François Daubigny.
Alfred-Arthur Brunel de Neuville was a French painter known mainly for paintings of still life and animals, especially cats. His works are in museums at Béziers, Brest, Chateau Thierry, and Louviers.
Philippe Caffiéri was a French sculptor. The son of Jacques Caffieri, he was received as a maître fondeur-ciseleur, joined his father's workshop and sometimes signed his independent works, especially after the death of his father in 1755, P.CAFFIERI.
Charles Ferdinand Ceramano, born Charles Ferdinand Semain, was a Belgian painter and illustrator of the Barbizon school.
Ceramano's favorite subjects were pastoral landscapes and scenes of sheep in a sheepfold or in a meadow.
Christian Clerebout is a French contemporary artist. He spent his childhood in Africa, which has left an indelible imprint in his painting style. He studied art from 1966 until 1979 in Paris and Rome. Before settling indefinitely in Brittany, he ran away to North America, lured by the United States, and New York, in particular. This is where his powerful cityscapes evolved: engorged with sweeping movement, brilliant colors and intense darks and lights. He has expanded creatively to include such subject matters as orchestras, airports, elephants and financial themes, but his expressive style is always recognizable.
Lucien Clergue is a French photographer of black and white photography, the first photographer elected a member of the French Academy of Fine Arts.
Lucien Clergue is one of the most famous photographers in France and founder of the annual Arles Festival, which has become the main event in the world of artistic photography, attended by up to 100,000 people. His famous photographic works - modernist black and white studies of female nudes, harlequins, dead animals, gypsies and bullfighting - are considered exemplary of the photographer-artist. Clergue is also known for his friendship with Pablo Picasso, which lasted some 30 years, until the artist's death.
Guillaume Coustou the Elder was a French sculptor of the Baroque and Louis XIV style. He was a royal sculptor for Louis XIV and Louis XV and became Director of the Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture in 1735. He is best known for his monumental statues of horses made for the Chateau of Marly, whose replicas now stand in the Place de la Concorde in Paris.
Pierre Cousy is a contemporary French animal painter. For twenty years he worked in a team of researchers in the history of the Languedoc-Roussillon region, specializing in the Upper Paleolithic. His job was to sketch material found during excavations and create illustrations for scientific publications. In 1983, Pierre Cousy decided to devote himself entirely to painting. Experience with the historical past, love for nature and animals, as well as a passion for hunting led him to the genre of animalistics.
Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec was a distinguished French Post-Impressionist artist, renowned for his deep insights into Parisian nightlife and the world of entertainment in the 1890s. Born into an aristocratic family in Albi, France, Toulouse-Lautrec faced significant health challenges. He suffered from a rare condition, possibly pycnodysostosis, which stunted the growth of his legs following two fractures during his adolescence, leading to a notably short stature as an adult.
Despite his physical limitations, Toulouse-Lautrec immersed himself in art, becoming a key figure in the Post-Impressionist movement alongside artists like Paul Cézanne and Vincent van Gogh. He is particularly celebrated for his vibrant and expressive depictions of the bohemian lifestyle in late 19th-century Paris, often featuring scenes from brothels and nightlife venues. His unique style combined elements of Art Nouveau and lithography, as evidenced in famous works such as "Moulin Rouge: La Goulue" and "At the Moulin Rouge: The Dance".
Toulouse-Lautrec's work offers a window into the Parisian entertainment scene of his time, marked by a vivid use of color and a candid portrayal of his subjects. His ability to capture the essence of Parisian society, from dancers to prostitutes, in an era of great artistic and cultural dynamism, makes his work particularly valuable to art collectors and experts.
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Jean-Baptiste Édouard Detaille was a French academic painter and military artist noted for his precision and realistic detail. He was regarded as the "semi-official artist of the French army". Detaille made his debut as an artist at the Salon—the official art exhibition of the Académie des Beaux-Arts—of 1867 with a painting of Meissonier's studio. At the Salon of 1868, he exhibited his first military painting, The Drummers Halt, which was based solely on his imagination of the French Revolution. Detaille enlisted in the 8th Mobile Bataillon of the French Army when the Franco-Prussian War broke out in 1870; by November he was seeing and experiencing the realities of war. This experience allowed him to produce his famed portraits of soldiers and historically accurate depictions of military manoeuvres, uniforms, and military life in general. He eventually became the official painter of the battles. He published a book called L'Armée Française in 1885, which contains over 300 line drawings and 20 color reproductions of his works.
Jean-Charles Develly is a French designer and artist. He is particularly famous for his paintings on porcelain while working at the Sèvres factory. Jean-Charles Develly worked at the Porcelain Manufactory in Sevres from September 1813 to 1847 and became one of the most famous artists of this establishment.
Johanna Dumet is a French and German artist and designer living and working in Berlin.
She graduated in fashion design from La Calade, Marseille, France. Dumet uses a variety of techniques, such as gouache-dyed paper glued to canvas, and creates paper sculptures as well. She is known for painting impulsively, with a strong sense of flow and without limitations.
Max Ernst was a pivotal figure in the 20th-century art world, whose work transcended the boundaries of nationality and genre to leave an indelible mark on culture, art, sculpture, and painting. Born in Germany on April 2, 1891, and later becoming a naturalized American and French citizen, Ernst's career was a testament to his relentless innovation and creativity. Known primarily as an artist and painter, Ernst was a founding member of the Dada movement in Cologne before becoming a major proponent of Surrealism in Paris. His early encounters with the works of Pablo Picasso, Vincent van Gogh, and Paul Gauguin at the Sonderbund exhibition in 1912 deeply influenced his artistic direction, infusing it with elements of Cubism and Expressionism. Despite his lack of formal artistic training, Ernst's experimentation with techniques such as collage and frottage showcased his unique ability to blend the absurd with the sublime, making him a central figure in the artistic avant-garde of his time.
Ernst's work is notable for its exploration of the unconscious, using dreamlike imagery and symbolic figures to critique societal norms and delve into the chaos of the human psyche. His experiences in World War I profoundly impacted his worldview, leading to a deep skepticism of Western culture and an enduring search for meaning through art. This is evident in works such as "Europe After the Rain II," which reflects the devastation of war and "The Fireside Angel," inspired by the political turmoil of the Spanish Civil War, showcasing his ability to address contemporary issues through a surreal lens.
Ernst's contributions to art are preserved in major museums and galleries worldwide, including the Tate in the United Kingdom and the Museum of Modern Art in New York. His sculptures, paintings, and collages continue to be celebrated for their innovative techniques and imaginative scope, marking him as a revolutionary figure in modern art. Among his most significant works are "Ubu Imperator," "The Elephant Celebes," and "The Virgin Spanking the Christ Child before Three Witnesses," each reflecting his mastery over a diversity of mediums and themes.
For collectors and experts in art and antiques, Max Ernst remains a symbol of artistic freedom and exploration. His ability to navigate through various artistic movements while maintaining a distinct, innovative voice is a testament to his enduring legacy in the art world. To stay updated on new product sales and auction events related to Max Ernst, signing up for updates is a valuable opportunity for those deeply invested in the nuances of modern and surreal art.
Noel-Dieudonné Finart was a French painter and draftsman.
A painter of battle and war scenes, Finart carefully sketched the ammunition and equipment of foot soldiers and cavalry, depicting the historical events of Napoleon's campaigns in Russia and the Middle East. He also painted landscapes, portraits, and hunting scenes. Finart exhibited his work regularly at the Salon from 1822.
Tsugouharu Foujita was a French twentieth-century artist of Japanese descent. He is known for his unique style, combining elements of Japanese painting and printmaking with European realism.
Foujita created a wide range of works in a variety of genres, including nudes, images of cats, portraits of women and children, and self-portraits. He later converted to Catholicism and began creating paintings with religious themes. The artist was internationally recognized, and his work was exhibited in many countries around the world. His work was characterized by the perfection of pictorial technique, virtuosity of drawing and an atmosphere of sophistication. The master also showed talent in graphics, photography, ceramics, theater, cinema and fashion design. Prices for his paintings were comparable to those of Picasso's works.
Johnny Friedlaender was a leading German/French 20th-century artist, whose works have been exhibited in Germany, France, Netherlands, Italy, Japan and the United States. He has been influential upon other notable artists, who were students in his Paris gallery. His preferred medium of aquatint etching is a technically difficult artistic process, of which Friedlaender has been a pioneer.
René Gaillard, a French artist of the 18th century, is recognized for his work in colored etching and engraving. His piece "Les Amans Surpris" (The Surprised Lovers), created after François Boucher, is an example of his craft and is housed within the collection of The Metropolitan Museum of Art. This work, a depiction of a romantic encounter, echoes the Rococo style prevalent during his time.
Gaillard's contributions to the world of French printmaking remain accessible and celebrated. His techniques and artistic choices, from the chosen subject matter to the subtleties of his engravings, offer a window into the rich artistic culture of 18th-century France.
For collectors and enthusiasts eager to explore the depths of Rococo printmaking, Gaillard’s works offer a unique glimpse into the past. The Met's Open Access policy allows for the public domain image of "Les Amans Surpris" to be freely used, inviting all to engage with Gaillard's legacy.
Emile Gallé was a French artist and designer who worked in glass, and is considered to be one of the major innovators in the French Art Nouveau movement. He was noted for his designs of Art Nouveau glass art and Art Nouveau furniture, and was a founder of the École de Nancy or Nancy School, a movement of design in the city of Nancy, France.
Jean-Louis André Théodore Géricault was a French painter and lithographer, celebrated for his pivotal role in the Romantic movement. Born in Rouen, France, in 1791, and educated among the elite in Paris, Géricault developed a profound connection with art from a young age, influenced by his training under notable figures like Carle Vernet and Pierre-Narcisse Guérin. This foundation set him on a path that diverged significantly from the classical traditions of his time.
Géricault's artistry is best known for its vibrant energy and emotional intensity, characteristics that marked a departure from the Neoclassical style predominant in the early 19th century. His most famous work, "The Raft of the Medusa" (1818–19), is a monumental canvas that dramatizes the tragic aftermath of the French shipwreck, Méduse, capturing the public and critical imagination for its raw portrayal of human despair and resilience. This painting not only criticized the French government but also showcased Géricault's masterful handling of drama, becoming an iconic symbol of Romanticism.
Throughout his career, Géricault remained deeply engaged with contemporary issues and the human condition, exploring themes of mental illness, social injustice, and the raw power of nature versus human vulnerability. His series of portraits depicting patients with mental illnesses, created towards the end of his life, highlighted his empathy and innovative approach to capturing human emotion and psychological depth.
Géricault's fascination with the dynamic forms and emotional potential of horses also led to some of the most stirring equestrian art of his time, reflecting his personal passion for horseback riding and his exceptional understanding of equine anatomy. This interest is evident in works like "A Horse Frightened by Lightning", showcasing his ability to capture motion and emotion in both human and animal forms.
Despite his premature death at the age of 32, Géricault's legacy endures, with his works residing in prestigious institutions like the Louvre in Paris. His artistic vision and dedication to portraying the realities and turbulences of his era have cemented his status as a pioneer of Romanticism, influencing subsequent generations of artists, including his contemporary and friend, Eugène Delacroix.
For collectors and experts in art and antiques, Géricault's oeuvre offers a profound insight into the Romantic spirit, embodying the tumult, passion, and innovation of an era on the cusp of modernity. His works continue to inspire and captivate audiences, reminding us of the power of art to provoke thought and evoke deep emotional responses.
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Roger Godchaux was a French sculptor, painter, and draftsman, recognized for his exceptional portrayal of animal figures. Born on December 21, 1878, in Vendôme, France, Godchaux's journey in the arts was marked by innovation and a profound connection to the animal form, particularly felines and elephants. His academic training at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts under the tutelage of Jules Adler and Jean-Léon Gérôme honed his skills, leading him to exhibit annually at the Salon des Artistes Français from 1905.
Godchaux's works are characterized by their dynamic force and volume, a testament to his rigorous observation and detailed drawings. His models, often sourced from zoos, allowed him to capture the dense muscularity of young felines and large animals, creating sculptures that are both lifelike and expressive. His admiration for Antoine-Louis Barye is evident in the vitality and precision of his animal sculptures.
For collectors and connoisseurs of fine animalier sculpture, Roger Godchaux's works remain a pinnacle of the genre. His sculptures, paintings, and designs can be found in galleries and private collections, celebrated for their timeless appeal and artistic excellence. To explore Godchaux's captivating world of animal art, sign up for our updates and discover the depth of his sculptural legacy.
Natalia Sergeevna Goncharova (Russian: Ната́лья Серге́евна Гончаро́ва) was a pivotal Russian avant-garde artist, painter, costume designer, writer, illustrator, and set designer, celebrated for her groundbreaking contributions to several art movements including Rayonism, Futurism, and Cubism. Born in Russia in 1881, Goncharova's artistic journey was marked by her vibrant exploration of Eastern and Western traditions, making her a leading figure in Russian modernism before she relocated to Paris in 1921, where she continued her artistic endeavors until her death in 1962.
Goncharova's work was distinguished by her engagement with the avant-garde, notably through her involvement with movements and groups such as Jack of Diamonds, Donkey's Tail, and Der Blaue Reiter. Her innovative approach blended Primitivism with Russian folk art (luboks), iconography, and modern European styles, making her work highly influential and controversial in its time. For instance, her series "Mystical Images of War" showcased her unique method of merging contemporary events with traditional forms.
Her later years in Paris were characterized by a continued pursuit of innovation, as evidenced by her designs for ballet costumes and sets, further cementing her legacy in the art world. Goncharova's collaborations with notable figures such as her partner Mikhail Larionov and her contributions to the Ballets Russes highlight her versatile talent and enduring influence on both Russian and French avant-garde art scenes.
For collectors and experts in art and antiques, Goncharova's work offers a rich exploration of avant-garde movements and the blending of cultural traditions. Her bold experimentation and pioneering spirit make her pieces highly sought after in the art community.
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Émile Coriolan Hippolyte Guillemin was a French sculptor of the Belle Époque. He worked in bronze. He studied under his father, the painter Auguste Guillemin, and under Jean-Jules Salmson. He showed work at the Salon of Paris from 1870 to 1899, and in 1897 received an honourable mention there. In 2008 his 1884 bronze sculpture Femme Kabyle d'Algerie and Janissaire du Sultan Mahmoud II (Kabyle woman from Algeria and Janissary of Sultan Mahmound II) sold for $1,202,500 plus auction fees in New York to a private collector through Sotheby's Auction House.
Yozo Hamaguchi was a Japanese artist and copperplate engraver who revived the almost forgotten technique of mezzotint by the 20th century.
He studied at the Tokyo University of Art, traveled to Europe, worked in Paris, and participated in exhibitions. Hamaguchi innovatively inserted bright colors into his black-and-white mezzotints, producing surreal and abstract paintings.
Herbert Chevalier Haseltine was an Italian-born French/American animalier sculptor, most known as an Equestrian sculptor.
He replicated many of his large works in table-top sizes. The author of a number of books on animalier art, Haseltine was well connected in American upper class society and did a three-year project to create a work for heiress Barbara Hutton. This project included two horses heads which were gilded bronze, with precious and semi precious stones. After her death the heads disappeared and resurfaced a few years ago at an auction in New York.
Hipkiss is the pseudonym of Alpha and Christopher Mason, both artists born in 1964 in Britain.
The artists began working together in the UK, then moved to France, where they continue to live and work. They are known for detailed, detailed figurative drawings created in a mixed media technique that combines pencil, silver ink and metallic foil. The artists draw large-scale urban landscapes, landscapes, strange insects, plants and birds, depicting images of a utopian future where nature has conquered the industrial environment.
Charles-Emile Jacques was a French painter of Pastoralism and engraver who was, with Jean-François Millet, part of the Barbizon School. He first learned to engrave maps when he spent seven years in the French Army.
Gwendolen Mary John, or Gwen John, was a Welsh post-Impressionist painter who spent most of her life working in France. Her drawings number in the thousands. Most of Gwen John's paintings depict figures (usually girls or nuns) in interiors, painted with great sensitivity and unobtrusive dignity. The artist also left many images of cats.
Pierre Paul Jouve was a French painter, sculptor and illustrator.
Paul was the son of painter and ceramicist Auguste Jouve, as a child he frequented the Jardin des Plantes and the Musée de la Histoire Naturelle de Paris and drew wild cats, which he fell in love with throughout his life. He entered the École des Arts Décoratifs and then the École des Beaux-Arts, exhibiting at the Salons from the age of 16. As part of the World Exhibition in 1900, Zhuv was commissioned by the architect René Binet to create a hundred-meter bas-relief frieze depicting wild animals.
In 1905, Marcel Bing organized the first solo exhibition of Paul Jouve, which featured 64 of his works. In 1907 Juve lived at the villa of French artists Abd el-Tif in Algeria, then went to Greece. After World War I he traveled to the Far East, visiting Ceylon, Saigon in the French colony of Cochinchin (now Vietnam), and Phnom Penh in Cambodia. He then explored the jungles of Africa. Paul Jouve became widely known for his paintings and sculptures depicting the animals of Africa. He was the first recipient of the Abd el-Tif Prize in 1907 and then the Indochina Prize in 1921.
Today, Paul Jouve is best remembered for his depictions of big cats and his illustration of an edition of Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book in collaboration with engraver F.L. Schmid (1873-1941), which was published in 1919. Juve became a director of the Society of Decorative Artists, and he was elected a member of the French Academy of Fine Arts in 1945. Throughout his long life, the artist continued to travel. He visited the United States and Bermuda, which inspired a panel entitled Poisson, which is now in the collection of the Museum of Fine Arts in Reims.
Paul Jouve died in his studio in Paris in 1973 at the age of 95.
Martinus Antonius Kuytenbrouwer the Younger was a 19th-century Dutch animalist painter, landscape painter and graphic artist. A court painter for Napoleon III, he was active in Brussels from 1849 to 1860.
The artist's creative legacy is held in museums in Brussels and Rotterdam.
Francesco Ladatte was an Italian sculptor. At birth, his surname was somewhat different - Ladetti. The name Ladatte was the result of "Frenchization" after Francesco moved from Italy to Paris. He is sometimes referred to as François Ladatte.