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William Adolphe Bouguereau (November 30, 1825 -
August 19, 1905) was a France|French Academic
art|academic painter. A student at the Académie
Julian in Paris, his realistic genre paintings and
mythological themes were exhibited in the annual
exhibitions of the Paris Salon for his entire
working life. Although he fell into disregard, due
perhaps to his staunch opposition to the
Impressionism|Impressionists, there is a new
appreciation for his work.  In his lifetime,
Bouguereau painted eight hundred and twenty-six
paintings.

In his own time, Bouguereau was considered to be
one of the greatest painters on earth.  In 1900,
his contemporaries Degas and Monet reportedly
named him as most likely to be remembered as the
greatest 19th century French painter by the year
2000, according to chairman Fred Ross of the
http://www.artrenewal.org Art Renewal Center.  His
works were eagerly bought, at high prices,
especially by American millionaires. After about
1920, Bouguereau fell into a curious disrepute.
Some assert this may have been consciously
engineered by the new "art expert establishment",
who resented his former opposition to new
developments in painting, but it is likely that
more profound societal factors were instrumental
to this enormous shift in taste and sensibility.
For decades, his name was not even mentioned in
encyclopedias.  Today, over one hundred museums
throughout the world exhibit his works.

At a rather advanced age, Bouguereau married for
the second time, with fellow artist Elizabeth Jane
Gardner Bouguereau, one of his pupils. He also
used his influence to open many French art
institutions to women for the first time,
including the Academie Français.

== Small sampling of works ==
* La Danse 1850
* Tobias Saying Good-Bye to his Father 1860
* Dusk, Bouguereau|Dusk 1863
* Le Printemps (The Return of Spring) 1866
* Alone in the World (Latest 1867)
* The Knitting Girl 1869
* The First Kiss 1873
* Nymphs and Satyr 1873
* Cupidon 1875
* The Birth of Venus (Bouguereau)|The Birth of
Venus 1879
* Evening Mood 1882
* The Nut Gatherers 1882
* Crown of Flowers 1884
* The Shepherdess 1889
* The Little Shepherdess 1891
* Invading Cupid's Realm 1892
* L'innocence 1893
* The Abduction of Psyche 1895
* The Young Shepherdess 1895
* The Virgin With Angels 1900
* Young Priestess 1902
* The Madonna of the Roses 1903

==Quotes==

*"One has to seek Beauty and Truth, Sir! As I
always say to my pupils, you have to work to the
finish. There's only one kind of painting. It is
the painting that presents the eye with
perfection, the kind of beautiful and impeccable
enamel you find in Veronese and Titian." --
William Adolphe Bouguereau, 1895

== See also ==

* William-Adolphe Bouguereau gallery
* List gallery
* Art nouveau, Alfons Mucha

== External links ==
Commons|William-Adolphe Bouguereau
* http://www.ibiblio.org/wm/paint/auth/bouguereau/
William-Adolphe Bouguereau at the Web Museum
*
http://www.artrenewal.org/museum/b/Bouguereau_Will
iam/bio1.asp William-Adolphe Bouguereau at
artrenewal.org
*
http://www.artrenewal.com/museum/b/Bouguereau_Will
iam/mark_walker1.asp Bouguereau at Work
*
http://www.clarkart.edu/museum_programs/featuredOb
jectDetail.cfm?ID=15&nav=3# Nymphs and Satyr
*http://www.elp.it/bygothic/Gallery/Bouguereau/ind
ex.html - Art Gallery
* http://www.artrenewal.org/ Art Renewal Center