William Bougeureau

William-Adolphe Bouguereau used ancient themes, making new readings of classical myths. He settled his abundant fantasy space with a romanticized selection of angels, women and children.

A skilled draftsman and expert of human anatomy, he sensitively captured nuances of character and mood, lively depicting the spirit and body of his subjects. His unusual awareness to detail was made achievable by his skill to sketch-out his visions.

Many of his drawings are works of arts in their own. It is just Bouguereau that opened the French academies to women, and it was he who was perhaps the greatest painter of the human figure in all of 19th century art history. His sketches come to life like no previous contemporary draftsman has ever before or ever since realized.

Bouguereau wasn’t just the most excellent ever at drawing human anatomy, more importantly - he captured the warm and delicates nuances of character and mood.