Gustave Moreau
Gustave Moreau was a French symbolism painter who lived from 1826 to 1898. He is most known for his works depicting either mythological or biblical scenes. Moreau is considered one of the first Symbolist artists and many credit him as being the one who actually started the movement.
Moreau was born in Paris to a middle-class family that offered him plenty of exposure to the art world, as his father was an architect, and his mother was a musician. He started painting at 15 years old after a family trip to Italy and at age 18, he enrolled in the esteemed École des Beaux-Arts in Paris. Moreau left school and studied under the French Romantic painter, Théodore Chassériau. Chassériau’s influence is evident in Moreau’s work. By the time Moreau was in his twenties, he was already displaying his work to the public. In 1852 by 38 years of age, he had his first piece displayed at the famous Paris Salon. He was highly successful at the Salon and exhibited his work there repeatedly between 1852 and 1880.
Moreau painted his first symbolist style painting, “Oedipus and the Sphinx”, in 1864. It was displayed at the Paris Salon that same year where he was awarded a medal for it. In his day, Gustave Moreau’s work was seen as eccentric, and he was often on the receiving end of harsh criticism. Moreau’s classical training came through in his art, but in it, he added inspirations from other countries and artistic ideologies, such as ornamentation and fashion. Moreau was a prolific artist and created over 8,000 pieces during his lifetime. He was a huge inspiration to the Symbolist artists who followed in his footsteps, such as Odilon Redon.
In 1891 Moreau became an art professor at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris where he had received his own training. Some of his more famous students while teaching include Henri Matisse and Léon Printemps. Moreau died in 1898 at age 72 from stomach cancer. Many of Moreau’s works can be seen on display at the Musée National Gustave Moreau, which is a museum located in his former studio. Interestingly, this museum is said to be haunted by André Breton, the founder of Surrealism, who regarded Moreau as the one who established the artistic foundation to Surrealism.
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