An in-depth exploration into the immense popularity of William-Adolphe Bouguereau's work in America throughout the late 19th and early 20th centuries Seeking to bring Gallic sophistication and worldly elegance into their galleries and drawing rooms, wealthy Americans of the late 19th and early 20th centuries collected the work of William-Adolphe Bouguereau (1825-1905) in record numbers. This fascinating volume offers an in-depth exploration of Bouguereau's overwhelming popularity in turn-of-the-century America and the ways that his work--widely known from reviews, exhibitions, and inexpensive reproductions--resonated with the American public. While also lauded by the French artistic establishment and a dominant presence at the Parisian Salons, Bouguereau achieved his greatest success selling his idealized and polished paintings to a voracious American market. In this book, the authors discuss how the artist's sensual classical maidens, Raphaelesque Madonnas, and pristine peasant children embodied the tastes of American Gilded Age patrons, and how Bouguereau's canvases persuasively functioned as freshly painted Old Masters for collectors flush with new money. Published in association with the Milwaukee Art Museum and the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art Exhibition Schedule: Milwaukee Art Museum (02/15/19-05/12/19) Memphis Brooks Museum of Art (06/22/19-09/22/19) San Diego Museum of Art (11/09/19-03/15/20)

Pomegranate is pleased to release this collection of reproductions of paintings by French artist Adolphe-William Bouguereau (1825-1905), whose evocative visions of a better, purer time and place earned him a passionate following not only during his lifetime but through to the present. Author Fronia E. Wissman offers insights into the artist's work, career, and family life. And sixty exquisite full-color reproductions exemplify Bouguereau's prodigious talent in creating works of sensual, emotional, and intellectual appeal.

- Showcases the work of a realist artist whose work is enjoying a revival - Explores Bouguereau's work in new depth, with expert insight into his most important paintings William Bouguereau, the most popular artist in nineteenth-century France, is rapidly becoming one of the most popular realist artists of all time. This book is an exploration of the four main types of paintings that were most prevalent throughout Bouguereau's body of work. This includes his mythological works, religious works, peasants, and portraits. This final section on portraits focuses on paintings of heads and hands, which gave the artist the opportunity to concentrate on the subtleties of capturing human emotion, something at which the artist was a consummate master, and is a primary factor in what makes his works, in general, so compelling. Although each section of the book discusses the importance of the individual genera within Bouguereau's oeuvre, and includes painting analyses to highlight his most important works, this book is a true showcase of the master's lifetime achievement through beautifully illustrated full-page plates of over 120 of his greatest masterpieces.