William-Adolphe Bouguereau

Art Appreciation

Born on November 30, 1825, French painter William-Adolphe Bouguereau was at his time considered one of the greatest painter in the world. 

Bouguereau, a well educated artist, practiced under the movements of Neoclassicism and Romanticism known as Academism.

His paintings were mostly modern interpretations of mythological and biblical stories.  He was admired for the accurate rendering of the human body in his paintings.

L'amore et Psyche, 1890

Boucle d'oreille, 1891

Pieta, 1876

Childhood Idyll, 1900

The Birth of Venus, 1879

Source: Wikipedia

From Childhood Crushes to Classic Masterpieces: My Lifelong Appreciation of the Female Form

I've always had an appreciation for the female form, starting when I was just a kid. I think the first time I remember feeling that spark was when I fell head over little-kid heels for Lea Thompson in All the Right Moves, Rebecca De Mornay in Risky Business, and Brooke Shields in The Blue Lagoon. I mean, come on—those were some iconic crushes. Women are stunning, and what fascinates me is how incredibly different they all are, whether it's their hair, eyes, facial features, or, yes, legs and personality.

Movies were my first window into appreciating women in all their varied forms and personas. Then came art. My parents were pretty open-minded when it came to art, so our house had statues of Roman and Greek goddesses scattered around. We even had a replica of Michelangelo's David, though I was way more interested in the other statues—y'know, the ones that captured the essence of someone I couldn’t quite understand yet.

As I got older, my interest grew. I wanted to understand the beauty of women even more, which led me to the 'photography' found in magazines. Let’s just say, whether it was catalogs, women's magazines, Playboys, or actual photography books, I was a curious student. During college, I spent a summer in D.C. and visited the art galleries there. It was a revelation—seeing those incredible artworks of women brought something new that photography didn't. I could almost feel the artist's intent, the effort to depict not just what a woman looked like, but what she meant.

That feeling stuck with me, and it still does. When I go to art galleries or museums, I'm drawn to those classic paintings of female nudes—Botticelli, Goya, Bouguereau, Courbet, Frieseke—you name it. It might make my fiancé sigh or roll her eyes, but she really doesn’t need to worry. My admiration is just about the beauty of form, and honestly, to me, she’s the original masterpiece.

Buck Brown (Playboy, April 1969)

Cecilia Beaux

Art Appreciation

Cecilia Beaux, born on May 1, 1855, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was the daughter of French silk manufacturer Jean Adolphe Beaux and teacher Cecilia Kent Leavitt. Tragically, her mother died just days after her birth, and her father returned to France, leaving Cecilia and her sister to be raised by their maternal grandmother and aunts. This nurturing environment fostered her early interest in art. ​

Beaux's formal art education began under the guidance of her cousin, Catherine Ann Drinker, an established artist. At the age of 18, Beaux taught drawing at Miss Sanford's School and gave private art lessons.

In 1876, she furthered her studies at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in Philadelphia, where she was influenced by the teachings of Thomas Eakins. Soon after, she was recognized with the Mary Smith Prize, a prestigious art prize awarded to women artists at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts.

To refine her skills, Beaux traveled to Paris in 1888, studying at the Académie Julian under prominent artists such as William-Adolphe Bouguereau and Tony Robert-Fleury. ​Her time in Europe did influence her palette as she adopted more white and paler coloration in her oil paintings.

Upon returning to the United States, Beaux established herself as a leading portraitist of the Gilded Age. Her work was often compared to that of John Singer Sargent, characterized by its elegance and sensitivity. She became the first woman to teach full-time at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, serving from 1895 to 1915. ​

Among her notable works are "Sita and Sarita" (1893), a captivating portrait of her cousin with a cat, and "Man with the Cat (Henry Sturgis Drinker)" (1898), depicting her brother-in-law. These paintings exemplify her ability to capture the essence of her subjects with depth and nuance.

Self-portrait, 1894

Sita and Arita (a portrait of Sarah Allibone Leavitt, 1893-1894

Man with the Cat (Henry Sturgis Drinker), 1898

Girl with Lyre, 1905

Sources:

Wikipedia

https://www.artrenewal.org/artists/cecilia-beaux/281

https://nmwa.org/art/artists/cecilia-beaux/

https://www.museumoftheearth.org/daring-to-dig/bio/beaux

https://www.dailyartmagazine.com/cecilia-beaux-in-10-paintings/

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Cecilia-Beaux

https://www.artnet.com/artists/cecilia-beaux/

https://awarewomenartists.com/en/artiste/cecilia-beaux/

Museum of Fine Arts Houston

While my parents spent the day shopping at the Houston Galleria, I visited the Museum of Fine Arts (MFAH).

While there, I learned about Buncheong, traditional Korean stoneware, Chaturanga, an Indian strategy game board, and viewed a wonderful collection of Pre-Columbian gold from Houston philanthropist Alfred C. Glassell, Jr.

I also viewed a great exhibit by photojournalist Roman Vishniac who captured Jewish refugees in Poland before the start of World War II, which is reminiscent to today's Syrian refugees.

At the museum, there were paintings by Camille Pissarro, Eugene Louis Boudin, William Adolphe Bouguereau, Winslow Homer, Gilbert Stuart, Frederic S. Remington, Edward Hopper, Leon Kroll, and Georgia O'Keefe.

MFAH (November 2015) taken with an iPhone 5S

Sources:

http://www.mfah.org/

Paul Émile Chabas

Art Appreciation

Paul Émile Chabas is considered one of Europe's greatest painters of nudes. He was born on March 7, 1869 in Nantes, France.

Chabas trained under William-Adolphe Bouguereau and Tony Robert-Fleury. He won several recognition and prizes such as the Prix National at the 1899 Paris Salon.

Check out more of his work HERE.

Portrait of a Young Woman via the-athenaeum.org

September Morn via en.wikipedia.org 

The Artist's Model via art-now-and-then.blogspot.com

Two Young Girls with a Starfish via en.wikipedia.org

Sources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_%C3%89mile_Chabas
https://www.the-athenaeum.org/art/list.php?m=a&s=tu&aid=5730
http://www.artnet.com/artists/paul-emile-chabas/
https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/488977
http://art-now-and-then.blogspot.com/2016/11/paul-emile-chabas.html

Seidai Tamura

Art Appreciation

Seidai Tamura is a realist artist known for his portraits of female nudes. Originally from Tokyo, Japan, Tamura was influenced, at a young age, by Manga comics. After graduating college and attending private workshops, he decided to become a fine artist.

As stated in a recent interview, Tamura invests the majority of his time on the drawing process before painting. This is evident in the detail of his paintings.

Perhaps one of my favorite of his paintings is The Three Graces, where three naked women, who look identical to each other, are bathing in a stream. The detail he dedicates to each girl is wonderful.

You can see more of his work HERE.




Self Portrait (2007) via americangallery



Morning Tea via conchigliadivenere



The Three Graces (2009) via conchigliadivenere

Similar Artists: William Adolphe Bouguereau


Sources: http://www.seidaitamura.com; http://www.khuantru.com/2011/10/seidai-tamura/; http://americangallery.wordpress.com/2012/10/04/seidai-tamura-1971/