WILLIAM BOUGUEREAU ~ A PASSION FOR PAINTING

WILLIAM BOUGUEREAU AND HIS PASSION FOR PAINTING

“Each day I go to my studio full of joy; in the evening when obliged to stop because of darkness I can scarcely wait for the morning to come… My work is not only a pleasure, it has become a necessity. No matter how many other things I have in my life, if I cannot give myself to my dear painting I am miserable.”  (Adolfe-William Bouguereau)

Adolphe-William Bouguereau was at once one of the most reviled and one of the most beloved of French artists by the time of his death in 1905. He was a favourite of collectors, who thought that his paintings were a fountain of eternal beauty far from contemporary life. His productivity was enormous. As a result he painted close to seven hundred works during his long life.

NYMPHES ET SATYRE

William Adolphe Bouguereau (1825-1905)
Nymphes et Satyre
1873

The painting shows four women/nymphs  (three more at the background) of the woods have caught a goat-faced satyr at a disadvantage. They are pulling him into the water by the arms, the ears and the horns.