Customer Reviews

Bouguereau

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Had Bouguereau painted in an era that didn't coincide with the impressionists, knowledge of his work would no doubt be more widespread, and we'd be blessed with more retrospective art books. After searching for years, the Wissman book was a dream come true: something other than a calendar that contained more than five Bouguereau works. The presentation here was well thought out, with the paintings grouped by subject/theme, and the text therein describing chronologically the development of Bouguereau's work. I appreciated the link between the artist's life and the influence of other artists and the art world at the time. The artwork itself is wonderfully portrayed, colorful and true, in almost all cases, the exceptions being an occasional inconsistency in contrast or sharpness (probably due to less-than-ideal photographic conditions were the paintings are found). I also applaud the inclusion of dimensions and location/credit notes which accompany almost all of the paintings. The only way to improve upon this book would be to include even more of the artist's work, and make it larger.

You wouldn't be ordering this book if you didn't already love Bouguereau, so rest assured that the reproductions are top notch, especially for a fairly inexpensive paperback.

I have been a fan of Bouguereau since seeing his gypsy shepherd girl in person at the San Diego Museum of Art many years ago. I searched in vain for this kind of book display of his art in museum gift shops and libraries. This author has not only picked some of Bouguereau's best works, but he also gives background information that allows the reader/viewer to understand the forces that created this French culture and art.

After reviewing and analzing such a wonderful work, I was very impressed with the author's research and development for the book. The book is well written and organized, and gives a wonderful timeline of what Bouguereau was like as a man and an artist. This book also has many of his pieces, including where the originals can be found. Many of the pictures are color, but some are black/white, which was a downfall. Even so, this is a must for all of Bouguereau's fans and a great coffee table book!

Being a fine artist for over 42 years and studying in this country and in Europe I have developed a style emulating this great artist. In studying many of his original pieces in galleries all over the world and obtaining every book on him I feel somewhat of an expert on Bouguereau. I would absolutely recommend this book to anyone interested in Bouguereau or his style. If anyone is interested in further comments or where his originals can be seen please feel free to contact me at BARONEVL@aol.com

Bouguereau by museum art exhibition curator and art history expert Fronia E. Wissman is a superbly presented collection of artwork underscored with thoughtful commentary showcasing one of the most simultaneously beloved and hated nineteenth-century French artists, Adolphe-William Bouguereau. His realistic, classic paintings of nude bathers, nymphs, young women and figures of mythology have a captivating, attention-calling quality that turns the head and the eye. His images are here displayed in full color photographs and the informative text recounts his life and enhances our understanding of the background to his masterpieces in this engaging and very highly recommended addition to personal and academic Art History Reference collections.

Wissman did a great job providing a fair and balanced view of French painter Bouguereau's career. And it's a good thing too! Everything else related to the artist is either out of print or a flimsy postcard book. How could this be? Well, the unfortunate stereotype of Bougeureau buffs is that they "don't know much about art but know what they like." It may be that many editors assume that if you like Bougeureau's paintings, you aren't the type to read a serious art book. I like to believe this is wrong. I enjoy Bougureau's art very much and am glad that someone published a reasonable paperback history and criticism of the artist. I hope that one day, others write similarly good books about other "forgotten" 19th century artists.

I bought this book in the Louvre Museum in Paris, where we were able to see some of the originals. They're compelling and just draw you in! This book allowed me to bring the paintings home, and study them. It's easy to read, and goes into detail explaining not only about Bouguereau, but also explains a lot of the detail and symbolism that he used in his paintings. So now I can enjoy them on a whole new level. I'm not a big art buff, but I know I'm drawn to his paintings, this was just a perfect book to cut my teeth on, and help to develop a better understanding of some very famous paintings. Buy the book. You won't regret it!

Adolphe-William Bouguereau (1825-1905) is in many ways the French equivalent of the British Victorian class of figurative painters - Lawrence Alma Tadema, Lord Leighton, JW Waterhouse - and had he lived in England rather than in the Impressionist laden France, he would be much better known today. Not that Bouguereau is unfamiliar to collectors and museums: in his time his portraits and luxurious paintings of shepherdesses and mythological creatures in a world of eternal beauty were popular and were added to important collections. It is only now with the new respect for the figure in painting that his name is becoming more recognizable.

Fronia E. Wissman has written a concise and illuminating text for this monograph and her style of exposition matches her subject. The book is filled with magnificent illustrations of Bouguereau's paintings with details and full-scale works allowed the prestige of excellent color reproductions. This is a fine monograph and one that belongs in the libraries of collectors and art historians who remain fascinated with the fin de siècle schools of painting. Highly Recommended. Grady Harp, September 05

This is a landmark book about the greatest painter of all time. To write a book about over-hyped painters (such as Cezanne or Picasso) is easy... simply rehash other books or take bits and pieces from the large resource pool of readily available information. However, to write a book about a once-famous painter, whose existence is almost concealed from the world, is laborious. In spite of this difficulty, Wissman has written the first biography of a great painter we almost know nothing about (except now).

This book contains large format pictures and an easy-to-read and informative biography. Highly recommended.