Bouguereau & America

Bouguereau & America showcases more than 40 masterful paintings by the French academic painter William-Adolphe Bouguereau (1825–1905). 

Bouguereau’s modern and highly-polished interpretations of classical subjects - including heroic men, sensuous goddesses, and playful cupids — as well as his intimate and idealized portrayal of peasant life were avidly sought after by American collectors. This exhibition focuses on Bouguereau’s paintings in US collections and how they reflect the tastes, beliefs and ambitions of America’s elite.

The exhibition explores the artist’s remarkable popularity throughout America’s Gilded Age, from the late 1860s to the early 1900s. During this period, owning a painting by the artist was de rigueur for any American who wanted to be seen as a serious collector: the artist’s grand canvases brought a sense of classic sophistication to newly-formed collections. 

‘…an important and ambitious exhibition, fruit of the kind of fresh, original idea more institutions should aspire to… a fascinating exploration of a bygone moment in the history of American taste’ – Eric Gibson, Wall Street Journal

Credit: Exhibition overview from museum website.