Bouguereau and America

Seeking to bring Gallic sophistication and worldly elegance into their galleries drawing and rooms, wealthy Americans of the late 19th and early 20th centuries collected the work of William-Adolphe Bouguereau (1825-1905) record in 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.