Gari Melchers: Painting in Italy

"The Communicants" by Gari Melchers

"In the summer of 1882, while still a student at the Académie Julian, Gari Melchers embarked on a trip to Italy. His artist father responded with a congratulatory letter containing worldly advice and parental admonitions warning his son of certain hazards that might befall him during his forthcoming trip:

'Your travel plans - to go with your friend Pauwels - to Naples and surroundings to study there for three months I can only approve of. But never forget that you find yourself there on volcanic soil. Use moderation in your enjoyment of its fiery wines and of its females with a temperament where love and hatred dwell in the same breast together, passion, that is, which can rage and destroy. Beware of the lover's dagger no less than of the greedy eye of peasant and shepherd; keep your gold pieces hidden, and in the mountains pay only with small coins of which you should always have a supply on hand... 

You don't know him yet but what about paying a visit to your Godfather, Garibaldi, on Caprera? In the end, the old man may even let you paint or draw his portrait; this would be good advertising for the American press..

Well then, my son, that which I yearned for in my youth but which had to remain just a beautiful dream, that is what now is going to be fulfilled for you: you will see and experience sunny Italy.'

This trip to 'sunny Italy' was a rite of initiation considered de rigueur for any young aspiring salon painter of the period. According to later accounts, he was accompanied by two companions and traveled to Italy via Marseilles. He spent a period of time in the mountain village of Atina and lived and painted for a while in a Trappist monastery at Casa Mari. 

A number of works were produced; the environs and inhabitants of Atina and the monastery at Casa Mari provided the subjects for the artist's Salon entries of the following year. The interior of the church at Casa Mari and the Trappist monks who worshiped there are also represented in two small oil paintings on wooden panels. They were the first of a long series of paintings by Melchers depicting individuals at religious devotions in church settings."

To be continued

(Excerpts from "Gari Melchers: His Life and Art" by Joseph G. Dreiss.)

Gari Melchers: Study in Paris

"The Letter" by Gari Melchers

"In 1881 Gari Melchers left Düsseldorf for Paris where he studied for the following three years at the Académie Julian and briefly at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts. The curriculum was far less rigorous than that offered at Düsseldorf. Academie Julian students spent most of their time executing drawings and painting from life. Instructors were some of the best-known academic painters of the day. 

His style did change after his arrival in Paris, most noticeably the brightening of his palette. The rich browns, grays and tans of his Düsseldorf style were replaced by the brighter flesh tones of the face and the resilient color accents of the background. Throughout his years he avoided the degeneration of form that by this time had begun to trouble many. His monumental group compositions of the 1880, for example, are light-filled, colorful, and yet replete with solid figures and furnishings. Even with the high-saturation color in his late paintings, the artist still tenaciously retained volume as an indispensable component of his style.

Melchers' 'The Letter' is a study of two peasant women of Brittany who have temporarily put aside their chores to consider a newly arrived letter in front of a luminous window. Much care and delight is taken in the depiction of the window light, which glows with a brilliant bluish cast, modeling the sturdy shapes and volumes of figures and objects. It is a seminal work in which the artist established both a type of subject matter and a stylistic approach which inform what are perhaps the most distinguished works of his career. Genre painting would preoccupy him during the 1880s, and to a slightly lesser degree for the rest of his life, providing the iconographic vehicle for some of his most important artistic statements. 

The careful study of the effects of light in an interior environment was also of overriding importance in all phases of his development. Finally, asymmetrical but balanced compositions would be frequently employed by Melchers in the future. The acceptance of 'The Letter' in the Salon of 1882 testified to the precocious abilities of the young Detroit painter and also contributed to a growing awareness of Melchers' work.

The reputation which he began to establish in Paris in the early 1880s would develop in the next two decades, as painting after painting won entry and awards in the annual French shows."

To be continued

(Excerpts from "Gari Melchers: His Life and Art" by Joseph G. Dreiss.)

Gari Melchers: The Curriculum at the Royal Academy, Düsseldorf

"The Embroideress, Portrait of Mrs.
Hitchcock" by Gari Melchers

"The Royal Academy of Art at Düsseldorf, which Gari Melchers entered in 1877, was among the many art institutions that sprang up in mid-eighteenth-century Europe. Although the academy was founded in 1773, it was only after the appointment of Friedrich Wilhelm von Schadow as director in 1826 that the academy came into its own as one of the most important European art schools of the nineteenth century. 

The program of study stressed the development of the technical skills necessary to achieve precise realism. Emphasis was placed on drawing, which was studied for two full years before oil painting was broached.The initial class involved tonal studies from prints, as well as some simple renderings from plaster casts. The second class consisted of study from antique sculpture with an emphasis placed on precision of outline and modeling. The fundamentals of anatomy, proportion and perspective were also introduced at this level. Study of two-dimensional and threeo0dimensional artworks was augmented by portrait drawings done from life. Only after students had successfully completed a full-scale drawing of a plaster figure could they advance to the upper0level classes and begin to master the medium of oil paint. Painstaking care in the meticulous rendering of both outline and tone was stressed at all levels.

The drawing method practiced at the royal academy involved a two-stage process of laying in the outline and then rendering the main masses of light and shade. Such care was taken with each drawing that as much as two weeks were required for the study and execution of a single head, with the outline alone taking as long as two or three days to complete. The results of so demanding a procedure are clearly evident in Melchers' drawing, which is remarkable for its precision and clarity.

A painting entitled 'The Gamekeeper' which also dates from this period shows a dark palette was used of predominant browns relieved only by the neutral gray of the workman's shirt and the off-white accents of his collar. The similarity of this student work with many of Melchers' paintings of later years shows that he did indeed retain much of what he learned at Düsseldorf after his tenure of study at the institution was over. Although the texture and details of objects are lost to a more painterly style in the later works, the artist still employed the solid modeling and clearly rendered contours that he had mastered at the German art school."

To be continued

(Excerpts from "Gari Melchers: His Life and Art" by Joseph G. Dreiss.)

Gari Melchers: The Royal Academy of Art, Düsseldorf

"Gari Melchers" by Fritz Strobentz

"Gari Melchers also received instruction from his father at the Sunday drawing classes held by Julius Melchers for would-be Detroit artists. Julius recognized and encouraged his son's artistic ability. He is reported to have boasted proudly of Gari's work during these early days. It was decided, then, that Gari should study art in Europe, and Julius further insisted that his son should work for the entire seven-year period of his apprenticeship without pay, so that he might indulge his curiosity and devotion to art in a purely idealistic manner, without thought of financial gain.

It might be expected that the son would follow in his father's footsteps. Although study in Paris was considered, Mrs. Melchers rejected the idea because of her fear of the corrupting influence of the Parisian social milieu. Instead, the young artist was given a choice of studying at the art academy in either Munich or Düsseldorf, Germany. He chose the latter.

The decision to study in Düsseldorf was a pivotal one in Melchers' career, for German art was to have a profound influence on him at different stages of his development. Not only did this affect his entire life's work, but he was later influenced by the impressionistic style of the Germans Max Liebermann and Fritz von Uhde. Besides benefiting from the academic program of the school, Melchers also formed several long-standing friendships while at the academy. There the young painter met Fritz Strobentz, a German art student who was later to do several paintings of Melchers. Hugo Vogel would also remain a longtime friend. Melchers was photographed along with his fellow students at Düsseldorf in 1878, and he captured his classmates in a number of sketches done at the time."

To be continued

(Excerpts from "Gari Melchers: His Life and Art" by Joseph G. Dreiss.)

Gari Melchers: Artistic Roots

"Portrait of a Man" by Gari Melchers

"Gari Melchers, whose full name was Julius Garibaldi Melchers, was born in Detroit, Michigan, on August 11, 1860. He was named after his father, Julius, and the Italian patriot Giuseppe Garibaldi, whom the elder Melchers admired. He was the eldest son in a family that included another son and two daughters.

His father Julius was not only Gari's first teacher but an artist of considerable repute in his own right. He had served in his youth as an apprentice to a local woodcarver in Prussia, but forced to leave his native country as a result of his involvement in an unsuccessful revolution, he fled to Paris and enrolled in the École des Beaux-Arts where he studied sculpture under the fabulous Jean Baptiste Carpeaux. 

In 1851 he left Paris and spent the following year in London working as a modeler of decorations for the Crystal Palace, then departed from Europe altogether in 1852, eventually joining relatives in Detroit. There he took up permanent residence and set up a sculpture studio. His son Gari is reported to have spent many afternoons there, serving, perhaps, a kind of informal apprenticeship.

Although nothing definite is known about the training program offered at the studio, Julius Melcher's attitude toward his apprentices has been described as stern and demanding. A nine-hour workday was typical, and Melchers also expected them to devote additional time in the evening to their craft. He is said to have consistently espoused the high ideals of art, demanding that his trainees unselfishly dedicate themselves to the pursuit of beauty without thought of monetary gain."

To be continued

(Excerpts from "Gari Melchers: His Life and Art" by Joseph G. Dreiss.)

Elizabeth Gardner Bouguereau: An Artist Till the End

"In the Garden"
by Elizabeth Gardner Bouguereau

"Carmen, the model who had come into Elizabeth Gardner's household at a very young age and been with her ever since was married just a few months after William Adolphe Bouguereau's death. This was yet another separation for Elizabeth that year, but she considered the girl's husband, Albert Vassard, to be a  'brave young man' and she realized how happy they were together. When she is mentioned in Gardner's correspondence, it is with maternal pride and affection. They remained devoted to the artist until the end. Carmen visited her practically on a daily basis when she was in Paris, and the couple often journeyed to Royat to spend a week or two with Elizabeth in the summer months. As a wedding gift, the artist furnished their small apartment 'with economy and good taste.'

Elizabeth Gardner's last extant letter to the family is dated February 26, 1920. It is unfortunate that no letters remain from the last two years of her life. The artist complained of rheumatism in her legs, but other than that she was in perfect health. She remained active, kept up her painting, had a large collection of books and read everyday. From 1916 on, she rented a small villa at Saint-Cloud, near Paris, in order to be close to Carmen and her husband during the summer months. By 1918, she was living there year round. It was in their company that Elizabeth spent the remainder of a very active and healthy life.

In a translation of a letter written by Albert Vassard to Elizabeth's family, we learn of her passing on January 28, 1922, at the age of 84:

'You have learned by my telegram the sad news of the decease of our dear Mme. Bouguereau. This telegram was sent to you entirely according to her instructions. She succumbed on the 28th of January to an attack of cerebral congestion [apoplexy]. For about a fortnight she was suffering a little, but her illness was not greatly shown until the 20th of January. She remained greatly ill for only eight days. The abruptness of this separation has affected greatly my wife and me, for nothing gave us indication of an end so near.'

Elizabeth Gardner was buried at the cemetery at Saint-Cloud, not far from the home of her faithful friends. Carmen, who had always been in charge of caring for the artist's books and papers and finery, continued her daily visits, oftentimes with freshly cut flowers for the woman who had so affectionately taken her under her wing.'"

(Excerpts from "Elizabeth Jane Gardner: Her Life, Her Work, Her Letters," MA Thesis by Charles Pearo, McGill University, 1997.)

Elizabeth Gardner Bouguereau: Continuing On

"The Call from Above"
by Elizabeth Gardner Bouguereau

"The notarized marriage contract between Bouguereau and Gardner stipulated that if Elizabeth were to outlive her husband, she would receive a yearly annuity of 25,000 francs ($5,000) for the rest of her life. She was also given full use of the Paris apartment and studio. Through the final days of her life, she lived modestly, as she always had, and continued to send small sums of money home. 

She never returned to La Rochelle in the summers. Instead, she spent August and September, as she had before her marriage, at Royat in what she affectionately referred to as her 'cobweb villa'. She also regained her studio at 73, rue Notre-Dame-des-Champs. This space she shared with a painter by the name of Henri and later with Boyd Waters in exchange for which they kept it in good order, did odd jobs and ran errands. Thus, the detour that married life had set before her, led her back to a path she had followed for so many years as a professional artist.

Her reliance on painting helped her deal with the sorrow, and she began 'hiding everything in colors.' In 1906, she submitted 'l'Appel d'en haut' ('The Call from Above'), a painting which she described as 'a souvenir for my lost artist... My husband at nearly 80 years of age still painted, and this is a good likeness of him in the last days of his life.' Elizabeth was aware that religious subjects and carefully finished works were no longer in vogue. However, she continued to paint in this style because it suited her tastes and was representative of her training. 

Nevertheless, she exhibited at four more Salons, up to and including the 1914 Salon before the outbreak of the war with Germany. She persevered in her efforts to abolish the duty on foreign works of art and wrote an article for The American Free Act League in protest. Many of the letters after 1914 are filled with news of the war. Gardner acted as an intermediary between wealthy Americans and agencies that provided aid wounded French soldiers and their families. One organization among the many she supported was the Artists Fraternity, an association that offered financial and moral support to families of artists who were absent at war.'"

(Excerpts from "Elizabeth Jane Gardner: Her Life, Her Work, Her Letters," MA Thesis by Charles Pearo, McGill University, 1997.)

Elizabeth Gardner Bouguereau: William's Death

"L'Imprudent" by Elizabeth Gardner Bouguereau

"Mark Steven Walker, in his biography on William Adolphe Bouguereau, relates the artist's final hours:

'When the grand old man felt his last hour had come, he gathered his family around him, dictated his last will and testament, and spoke to them. Then he said, 'Tell the priest to come, now...'

The silence from July to October, in terms of Elizabeth's writing, is a painful testimony to the distress she endured. Two cable messages arrived one after the other at Exeter. The first, dated August 19, 1905, read: 'Uncle William delicate health myself well, Love Aunt Lizzie.' The second, August 20, said: 'I have just paid a final good-bye to my dear husband. Love to all. Aunt Lizzie.'

In the September 29 letter she writes:

'I have recovered from my recent fatigue but as I grow stronger I realize more and more the aching void in my life. My dear husband and I passed ten years of perfect affection together. All our tastes were the same, and as he grew older he depended so entirely upon me that I almost never left him. I shall try to be useful in some way. At present my family here need me. We have most important business questions to settle, but all goes as I wish.

A few days later she continues:

I had strength and courage for all the sad scenes through which I was called to pass, but after the great effort was over I have felt very weary, and my determination to reply myself to each of my hundreds of letters of condolences has not yet been realized. I cannot be reconciled to my terrible loss... I realize that God's will was for the best, but it is very hard, and in all the important decisions I have to make for myself and for others I do miss the good counsel which I found in my dear husband.

He is universally mourned for - such a loss to his friends and to all the pupils who depended on him. So many who have not the moral force to fight on alone find their career blasted. 

I am not ill. I am beginning to feel rested. I see the good friends who call. It is a comfort to talk with them of him.'"

(Excerpts from "Elizabeth Jane Gardner: Her Life, Her Work, Her Letters," MA Thesis by Charles Pearo, McGill University, 1997.)

Elizabeth Gardner Bouguereau: M. Bouguereau's Final Years

"By the Seashore"
by Elizabeth Gardner Bouguereau

"As the years advanced, William Adolphe Bouguereau became more dependent on Elizabeth. He had difficulty relinquishing responsibilities and duties and was particularly devoted to his students. In March 1903, at seventy-seven years of age and still active, there were no indications in Elizabeth's letters that his end was so near (August 19, 1905).

In fact, in April, a very exciting turn of events occurred, which took both William and Elizabeth to Italy. She spoke of this trip in a letter:

'You will be surprised to receive another letter from me so soon but as I have good news to tell I will not postpone writing. You have perhaps already seen in the papers that Monsieur Bouguereau has been raised to the dignity of Grand Officer in the Legion of Honor. It is a rank to which very, very few attain outside of Military Officers, for an Artist it is very rare.

The new decoration has been given on the occasion of the celebration of the centenary of the foundation of the French Academy at Rome, of which Bouguereau was a government pupil 50 years ago. The building is called the Villa Medicis... We were told that it is a duty for my husband to be present at the celebration. So we have decided to leave Paris on Tuesday, April 14th for Rome! I can hardly believe that I am actually to see Italy. I shall at least see a bit of it.

We shall not stop by the way but continue directly 30 hours to arrive on Wednesday for dinner. We travel under the best conditions possible accompanied by a younger Member of the Institut and his wife, who are very fond of us and will be tender prudent companions. So do not be anxious.'

As late as December, 1904, Bouguereau continued to be solicited, but although he was willing to help, he was not as strong as he used to be. Elizabeth wrote:

'He begins to feel the weight of years and walks with difficulty. Still all the pupils, friends and artistic societies who are accustomed to profit by his prudent advice persist in calling on him for constant services. I can spare him much fatigue and give all my time to his society.'

At the end of July 1905, he left the halls of the École des Beaux-Arts for the last time for La Rochelle, 'having discharged all the academic duties we had affectionately entrusted to him, he left for his old home town, bidding us all farewell. His handsome, grandfatherly face was veiled with melancholy. Perhaps he could already sense, with the lucidity that comes before the supreme hour, that his time of final rest was close.'"

To be continued

(Excerpts from "Elizabeth Jane Gardner: Her Life, Her Work, Her Letters," MA Thesis by Charles Pearo, McGill University, 1997.)

Elizabeth Gardner Bouguereau: The Bouguereau Enterprise

"Bubbles"
by Elizabeth Gardner Bouguereau

In marrying William Adolphe Bouguereau, Elizabeth Gardner had knowingly - and willingly - laid aside her own brush. This decision was so important to both of them that it had been one of the factors that had led to the extraordinary length of their 17-year engagement. As she pointed out in a letter to her brother a few months before her marriage:

'Formerly I was not willing to sacrifice any part of my devotion to the Art in which I was so ambitious to succeed and which I loved above everything else. Now, that ambition has been satisfied beyond my hopes. I have made myself known on both sides of the ocean... I have not made a fortune, business is much more difficult than before, my eyes are delicate. I am glad to know that I shall work only when I feel like it.'

Furthermore, she greatly admired Bouguereau's work. His status as an artist far surpassed hers. It is clear, though, from her correspondence that Bouguereau never tried to persuade her in her choice, and neither did he protest once it was made. 

Managing both the Bouguereau household and his business enterprise became a full-time occupation for Elizabeth, which she accomplished both in French and in English. She wrote: 

'I have a small house for a large family, and six servants to direct. My husband's position brings him constant callers, business letters, etc. etc. I love to work and am so glad to assume many responsibilities which would otherwise disturb him.' 

What had an impact on their lives more than social obligations were Bouguereau's duties as a public figure. His notoriety brought new experiences to Elizabeth's life which both artists seemed to appreciate, illustrated by this example:

'We have been for ten days on the western coast of France. First at La Roche-sur-Yon where a monument to a famous French artist - Paul Baudry - was unveiled. The committee wished M. Bouguereau to pronounce the inaugural address, and he consented. As the President of the Republic, with a crowd of dignitaries were present, and my husband was a guest of honor, and wore his handsome costume of Member of the Institute, and as he as well as the President wished me to be present, it was one of the proudest weeks of my life... From there we went to La Rochelle where the President came also for an official visit. We illuminated our house and did all I could. This event took all my time and strength for a month, hence I have been slow in writing.'

Elizabeth's new functions allowed Bouguereau to devote more time to painting in his studio. Thus, her organizational skills, allowed the ageing artist to maintain a level of productivity that would have, otherwise, been impossible (i.e. an average of ten finished paintings per year for 1896/97/98)."

To be continued

(Excerpts from "Elizabeth Jane Gardner: Her Life, Her Work, Her Letters," MA Thesis by Charles Pearo, McGill University, 1997.)

Elizabeth Gardner Bouguereau: The Wedding

"After the Engagement"
by Elizabeth Gardner Bouguereau

"For two months preceding the wedding, Elizabeth Gardner was busy with preparations and the renovations of William Adolphe Bouguereau's living quarters at 75, rue Notre-Dames-des-Champs.

The wedding ceremony consisted of three discreet and simple events. None of Gardner's family was able to attend. At 10 o'clock on June 22, there was a civil ceremony conducted by the Mayor of Paris. Elizabeth had two witnesses: long-time friend Ned Tuck and Mr. Morse, the American Consul to Paris. Bouguereau's witnesses were Monsieur Ginain, architect, and Monsieur Thomas, sculptor.

Gardner's description of the 'eventful day' is the object of her June 25 letter:

'Monday was a lovely day. Ned Tuck and Julia (Tuck) came for me at half past nine, and at the mayor's we met all the rest of our party of 16. The service was brief. The mayor made a justly complimentary speech and then we all drove to the chapel where every thing was certainly charming. I believe I behaved well although I confess to a considerable internal emotion. The Bishop made rather a lengthy address and I was proud enough of his appreciation of my dear, noble husband. He also said kind things of your sister...

Of course, our good friends did every thing splendidly. The wedding breakfast was delicious and the floral decorations beautiful. Then came a few toasts. Our Consul proposed the health of the bride and groom. Paul Bouguereau replied in a manner which brought tears to the eyes of many guests. He was most eloquent; he said he had already had occasion at home to shew what he felt for me, but that he wished before the company to assert how proud and happy the children both were at their Father's choice, and to promise constant respect and affection for their new Mother. Then Ned read your cable and proposed the health of my family necessarily absent, saying such nice things of the friendship which had united our Fathers and which he was so happy to continue...

We came then quietly to the hotel which I found beautifully dressed with flowers. I felt weary and so glad to pass the rest of the day quietly in our little garden with my husband, while the young people profited by the fine carriages to take long drives...'"

To be continued

(Excerpts from "Elizabeth Jane Gardner: Her Life, Her Work, Her Letters," MA Thesis by Charles Pearo, McGill University, 1997.)

Elizabeth Gardner Bouguereau: A Lengthy Engagement, Pt. 2

Drawing for "Marriage of the Virgin"
by William Adolphe Bouguereau

"Of interest, too, in William Adolphe Bouguereau and Elizabeth Gardner's relationship, is the French nineteenth-century sense of propriety. The fact that they are cautious about attracting attention, even at their ages and under the circumstances, seems old fashioned to modern readers. Nevertheless, during the seventeen years of their engagement, they never spent a vacation together. Bouguereau went with his family to La Rochelle to paint every summer; Elizabeth sketched landscapes and figures in Auvergne. Naturally, in the letters to her family there is no specific mention or suggestion of intimacy, though his name appears much more often in the 1880s, and particularly around the time of their marriage when Bouguereau and his children came regularly to dinner at Gardner's apartment. 

In 1896, Bouguereau's mother died, and by the time, they were married in June of that year, Elizabeth was a few months shy of her fifty-ninth birthday. She had attained many of the goals she had set for herself and felt proud of her achievements. This is a sharp contrast to the perception she had of her career at the time of her engagement. Since then both artists had aged, both had enjoyed success, and each was attracted to a quiet, home life with a minimum of social obligations. In a letter to her brother three months before the wedding, she informs him of her decision to marry and her feelings about this new phase in her life:

'...I expect soon to marry Monsieur Bouguereau. All through our acquaintance of so many years he has invariably shewn himself to be a kind, noble Christian gentleman, he has received titles and honors such as few mortals can boast of, he has a sufficient fortune for our needs, he is in splendid health. I have a warm and deep affection for him and he manifests the same for me. I know you will all be glad for my happiness. I am today quite happy...'

Concerning her ring, Elizabeth writes:

'Monsieur Bouguereau has given me a magnificent engagement ring. We are both simple in our tastes but he wanted me to have this. It is a very large sapphire surrounded by little diamonds. My poor little hand, that has done so much work, feels quite abashed at the unaccustomed decoration.'

To be continued

(Excerpts from "Elizabeth Jane Gardner: Her Life, Her Work, Her Letters," MA Thesis by Charles Pearo, McGill University, 1997.)

 

 

Elizabeth Gardner Bouguereau: A Lengthy Engagement, Pt. 1

"Portrait of Mademoiselle Elizabeth Gardner"
by William Adolphe Bouguereau

"In a letter to her sister, dated 1879, Elizabeth Gardner announced her engagement to Bouguereau. It came after the good news of the honorable mention she was awarded at the Salon:

'And now about my engagement... I am very fond of Mr. Bouguereau and he has given me every proof of his devotion to me. We neither of us wish to be married at present. I have long been accustomed to my freedom. I am beginning to attain a part of the success for which I have struggled so long, he is ambitious for me as well as I for myself, as it is I can't help working very much like him. I wish to paint by myself a while longer.

He has a fretful Mother who is now not young, 78 I think. She is of a peevish, tyrannical disposition and I know she made his first wife much trouble.The house and everything belongs to the son, but she has always lived with him and I should never have an easy conscience if I caused any change. She wants him all to herself, and he is of course fond of her. Bye and bye she will feel the care of their large house and many servants a burden and I shall have my way. She always used to like me very much and when the proper time comes I shall try to be a comfort to her...

What I say about the domestic matters is in strictest confidence. I mean to do right in every way and so does he. My friends here have all been lovely and not inquisitive. They think it is a splendid thing for me and take it for granted that people of our years and position may manage our private affairs as we think best... Mr. Bouguereau went with me to a party the other evening at the house of old friends of ours, it was our first time out together. We can not have as good times here as engaged people in America. Long engagements are not customary and we never drive together or do anything to attract attention. I am very happy in my future prospects and so is he, but I have seen enough of the storms of life to be somewhat philosophical."

First of all, it is clear that Gardner was not prepared, at this point, to sacrifice her career as a painter for the prospect of marriage. This arrangement appears acceptable to Bouguereau. Elizabeth was forty-one years old and William, fifty-three. Both artists were at the peak of their careers and, as Elizabeth expressed, she had not yet reached the goals she set for herself. She said:

'M. Bouguereau's mother objected to our marriage because I was a painter. Two painters in a family she thought too much for domestic happiness, and so do I - now. It was because of my passion for painting that I refused to marry when I was younger, and had yet to win position as an artist. When I was older, I saw the wisdom of his mother's objection; and when he was alone and needed me I abandoned the brush. Voilà tout!'"

To be continued

(Excerpts from "Elizabeth Jane Gardner: Her Life, Her Work, Her Letters," MA Thesis by Charles Pearo, McGill University, 1997.)

Elizabeth Gardner Bouguereau: A Medal from the Salon

"The Farmer's Daughter"
by Elizabeth Gardner Bouguereau

"In 1887 there was a turn of events that gave Elizabeth Gardner, once more, a distinguished position among artists exhibiting in the French capital. With her painting "La Fille du Fermier (The Farmer's Daughter"), she became the first and only American woman to receive a medal (third class) at the Paris Salon. She was then fifty years of age.

This was an honor she had desired for some time. As early as 1877 she turned down orders so as to have more time to devote to her Salon entry. 'I must work to get a medal in Paris and not for money a while longer. All will come right in time I am confident if I work hard and am patient.'  She wrote in 1878, 'I am bound to get a medal some year.' Then it came:

'My pictures at this year's Salon ('La Fille du Fermier' and 'L'Innocence') have just received the medal which I have waited for so many years. I hasten to write you by the first mail for I know you will all sympathize with me in my happiness. The jury voted me the honor by a very flattering majority - 30 voices out of 40 - and it is the only medal given to an American since the new tariff. No American woman has ever received a medal here before. You will perhaps think I attach more importance than is reasonable to so small a thing, but it makes such a difference in my position here, all the difference between that of an officer and a private, and I hope it will be a good thing for the sale of my paintings. 

I made an extravagant risk in my large one this year. Monsieur Bouguereau is very happy at my success. He is as usual President of the Jury, it is his great impartiality which has so long kept him in office. He has always said that I must succeed through my own merit and not by his influence. I hope to send some photos soon... I have nearly a hundred letters of congratulations and dispatches to acknowledge today. I have begun by the dear ones at home.'"

To be continued

(Excerpts from "Elizabeth Jane Gardner: Her Life, Her Work, Her Letters," MA Thesis by Charles Pearo, McGill University, 1997.)

Elizabeth Gardner Bouguereau: Daphnis and Chloë, 1882

"Daphnis and Chloë"
by Elizabeth Gardner Bouguereau

"According to Elizabeth Gardner's letters dated between 1864 and 1896, the number of times she attended a concert, banquet, or went to the theater were few and far between. If she did, it was quickly compensated for the next day by doubling her efforts. In this respect, she and Bouguereau were most compatible. Neither enjoyed socializing. Both refused countless invitations in favor of using precious work time to their advantage. In spite of this, she held large receptions in her studio before a painting left for the Salon.

Her 1882 Salon work, 'Daphnis et Chloë' was classically inspired. The crowning of flowers possibly signifies a passage from the innocence of girlhood to the 'flowering' of womanhood. The charming bucolic setting serves to imbue the figures with the ideals of a nature poem, a 'fête gallante.' This work, begun in December of 1880, offered a considerable amount of difficulty to the artist because of its size and subject. However, it brought her many orders and callers. She could have sold it 'many times over.' Gardner described the experience:

'I have worked constantly for three months on my large painting of Daphnis and Chloë and finished it, I think, successfully. Being the largest I had undertaken (172.7 x 116.8 cm.; 5.7 ft. x 3.8 ft.), it gave me no end of thought and work. It left of the 24th for the exhibition, and the Jury for admission have sent me a word of congratulation doubly gratifying because Monsieur Bouguereau was not there to be accused of favoring me as his pupil, as the jealous artists always think.

On the 20th (March) I gave a reception in the afternoon inviting the best of my American friends and only a few French as I wanted to avoid a jam. About 100 came and as many of my particular friends stayed all the afternoon it was constantly lively. All the rooms were open and I believe they looked prettily... I wore my pretty new bronze and blue dress. There were three stylish men to wait on the guests and Toinette (her maid) really did wonderfully well... it was the most brilliant thing I have ever done. I requested the papers to say nothing about the reception. I am delighted to have my pictures praised but personally I desire to belong to my friends and not to the public.'"

To be continued

(Excerpts from "Elizabeth Jane Gardner: Her Life, Her Work, Her Letters," MA Thesis by Charles Pearo, McGill University, 1997.)

Elizabeth Gardner Bouguereau: Doing Well

"Garde" by Elizabeth Gardner Bouguereau

"In 1881, at the time the Union des Femmes Peintres et Sculpteurs was founded, Elizabeth Gardner had already shown thirteen paintings at ten Salons. She was making her way on her own through hard work and perseverance. She spent little time socializing, even within the art community. Her reputation had now been established and she was having fewer difficulties finding clients to purchase her work. She explained her position in a letter to her brother John:

'I have sent to the Spring exhibition two important pictures, the best I have done. The jury gave them No. 1. The exhibition does not open till May 1st. I shall have to wait till its close in June or July to know what I shall realize from these pictures. I think my prospects are very bright. My career in Paris has been very expensive and I have sometimes made mistakes and met with disappointments but for the last two years I have been decidedly getting ahead, and have not only paid easily all my expenses but have got rid of some old obligations. Now I ought to be earning still more and have a little extra for those I love. I will do my best. 

Everything looks bright. May strangers are coming over and I hope they will bring plenty of money. The more I see of very rich people the better contented I feel with a modest position, honorably earned. I see families so excited with sudden wealth and then again so wretched when a crash comes that I have no desire to be among the number.'

Any extra money, even small amounts, Elizabeth could manage to put aside was sent to her family in Exeter. She never travelled abroad except for two return visits to America in 1871 and 1877, and a visit to Italy with Bouguereau in the late 1890s. On one occasion in 1882 she put off a visit home because of her work:

'One reason I postponed my letter was that I dreaded to tell mother that I must again defer my visit home. I wanted to go and tried to arrange it, but I have been so successful in receiving orders and so many are pushing to keep me back, from jealousy, that I feel I ought to remain near and make hay while the sun shines.'"

To be continued

(Excerpts from "Elizabeth Jane Gardner: Her Life, Her Work, Her Letters," MA Thesis by Charles Pearo, McGill University, 1997.)

Elizabeth Gardner Bouguereau: Acceptance in the Paris Salon

Elizabeth Gardner's Calling Card, 1870

"In 1868, ten Americans exhibited at the Salon, two of these were women: Elizabeth Gardner and Mary Stevenson Cassatt. When Elizabeth Gardner's first two Salon entries 'Les Trois Amis' and 'Nature morte, raisins, etc.' were accepted, she proudly described her success in the submission and acceptance process in a letter to her sister:

'I had sent two original pictures to the annual Paris exhibition. Twelve of the first artists are chosen as judges. They look over the pictures and decide whether or not they shall be hung in the Salon. It is very difficult for young aspirants to be accepted, especially on their first trial, and I had never sent before. We were kept waiting six weeks. One after another of my friends were written to that their pictures were refused. There were 800 unfortunates in all but when the exhibition opened, both of mine were hung in full view among the accepted. I did want to get one admitted but had not dared to hope for both. I know you will all be glad for me. It gives me at once a position among foreign artists and raises the value of what I paint. I have just received $400 in gold for one of the pictures, and have spent it nearly all for curious things to paint.'

Later, she recalled the early years and gave the following description of those works:

'I sent two small canvases (to the Salon), nothing very tragic in subject. One was a canary-bird picking at grapes; the other, a young girl with bird and dog. Both paintings were accepted, to my great delight. They were well hung, but to my dismay were in the big room then called in derision 'The Omnibus.' However, I at once sold the 'Child and Dog' for a good price, most useful in my quite empty purse. The other I have kept myself as my first exhibition painting. I had seen Rosa Bonheur's first little picture kept by her family, and in this, as in donning boy's costume, I imitated her, for she was the deity I then worshipped.'

This acceptance also meant that not only her name and her teacher's name were listed in the Salon catalogue, but also her address, which would allow prospective buyers to get in touch with her."

To be continued

(Excerpts from "Elizabeth Jane Gardner: Her Life, Her Work, Her Letters," MA Thesis by Charles Pearo, McGill University, 1997.)

Elizabeth Gardner Bouguereau: The Way Forward

"Ploughing in the Nivernais" by Rosa Bonheur

"Parallel to the individual attempts at claiming one's right to equal education and status were collective women's movements such as the Union des Femmes Peintres et Sculpteurs which had been founded in 1881 in Paris. [At its peak it had 450 members, including noted painter Marie Bashkirtseff. Their goals were to create a community to educate and support female artists and to display their work. They also founded and organized the annual Salon des Femmes as an exhibition of women's art exclusively. Additionally they campaigned for women's entry into the École des Beaux-Arts and for their eligibility to compete for the Prix de Rome art prize.]

Interestingly, Elizabeth Gardner was not a member of the Union, even though she waged many of the same battles in her own way. Her departure for Paris in the mid-sixties, her participation in a women's cooperative venture, her pursuit of subsidized training similar to that available to men, her return to Paris at the height of the Commune, and, later in life, her devotion to the war effort, are all actions that testify to her determination to function on par with men. 

Commentaries in her letters on the role of women and women artists are rare. Once example occurs in an account of the 1867 Exposition Universelle in Paris in which she describes Rosa Bonheur's entries: 

'Rose Bonheur must have some twenty pictures there, and Madam Browne has some more beautiful still. I feel glad that their work can stand by side of that of the other sex.'

Issues of women's rights are not discussed in her correspondence either. What preoccupies her thoughts is gaining recognition as an artist and achieving success in her chosen career. Gardner realized that the Salon was one of the few avenues open to her to reach those goals."

To be continued

(Excerpts from "Elizabeth Jane Gardner: Her Life, Her Work, Her Letters," MA Thesis by Charles Pearo, McGill University, 1997, and "Union of Women Painters and Sculptors," an article in Wikipedia.)

Elizabeth Gardner Bouguereau: Breaking Ground

"La Captive"
by Elizabeth Gardner Bouguereau

"Elizabeth Gardner was a forerunner of movements that allowed women a foothold in the sacred sanctuary of a government-subsidized system - one that had its roots in the art schools and perpetuated itself through the Salons into the marketplace.

The episode of Gardner's entry to the all-male studios in Paris is recounted in a 1910 article on the artist. The story represents the earliest account of the incident, and gives the Gobelins Tapestry Manufactory as the school where it took place. Her entry into l'Académie Julian apparently occurred later:

'The great drawing school of Paris in the sixties was the Gobelin Tapestry Manufactory supported by the government. No woman had ever crossed its threshold as a student, nor had one ever applied for admission to its select classes. 'I resolved,' said Madame Bouguereau, 'to follow Rosa Bonheur's example in a similar emergency. My hair was short, fever having clipped it before I quit America. I applied to the Paris police for permission to wear a boy's costume. [The police report is dated Feb. 1, 1873.] This was readily granted. In that guise I was admitted to the Gobelin with the approval of the professor who was interested. I never suffered the slightest annoyance. The students were most courteous. I was never remarked in the streets of Paris and always changed my costume when I returned home...

When M. Julien, inspired by the American girl's pluck and talent, opened to women students his famous studio in the Passage des Panorames, Miss Gardner discarded her boy's costume and left the Gobelin School. Where at Gobelin she was the only woman, she had now in the Julien three fellow [female] students. This number soon increased, for, the precedent once established, women not only flocked thither from all parts of the world, but divided the honors with the men, art recognizing no sex in its awards.'

Her thoughts were occupied with gaining recognition as an artist and achieving success in her chosen career. Gardner realized that the Salon was one of the few avenues open to her to reach those goals.

To be continued

(Excerpts from "Elizabeth Jane Gardner: Her Life, Her Work, Her Letters," MA Thesis by Charles Pearo, McGill University, 1997)

Elizabeth Gardner Bouguereau: The Study of Animals

"The Shepherd David"
by Elizabeth Gardner Bouguereau

"In 1867, spurred by a desire to improve on her painting of animals, Elizabeth Gardner enrolled in classes at the Jardin des Plantes where Antoine Barye, the well-known animal sculptor, was director. She recalls the training:

'I realized that the animals in my composition were very inferior to Rosa Bonheur's and I at once joined at the Jardin des Plantes the class for animal drawing from skeleton and plaster. This class was directed by the great Barye, many of whose bronzes are owned in America. I found the work rather tame, and, longing to study from living animals, I drew an outline from a fine African greyhound which belonged to me, and indicated the skeleton of the dog inside. Barye was so pleased with my enterprise that he ever after took a most paternal interest in my work.'

To illustrate the great lengths to which artists sometimes went to sketch from life, McCabe relates the story of the painting of the lion in 'Gardner's 'David, berger [shepherd],' as told to her by the artist:

'A lion in a travelling circus was the model... 'The lion was ill and asleep,' said Madame Bouguereau, 'when I asked permission of the circus proprietor to sketch it. Its position was just what I wanted; but the proprietor, having himself no use for a lion not in action, was loath to understnad. When I secured his reluctant permission I set to work; but before the study was completed, the lion died. Not to be outwitted, I bought the body and carted it home to my studio where the picture was finished.'

To be continued

(Excerpts from "Elizabeth Jane Gardner: Her Life, Her Work, Her Letters," MA Thesis by Charles Pearo, McGill University, 1997)

Elizabeth Gardner Bouguereau: A Ménagerie

"Deux Mères de Famille"
by Elizabeth Gardner Bouguereau

"Elizabeth Gardner loved birds, animals, and children. They enter into the story here because of their constant presence in her paintings and in her everyday life. They also serve to paint a picture of the artist's interior, her studio space. Whatever found itself within the physical parameters of her studio could also have been 'fair game' for a canvas.  The earliest mention of her ménagerie occurs in an 1867 description of her studio:

'We are enjoying our new studio though we often wish we were a little nearer the center of Paris. We have a splendid great room to work in. Just now our family is quite numerous. We have a little French girl living with us. We found that our housekeeping and sewing took too much time so we took a little orphan child who had neither home nor relatives. She is pretty and very smart. She is delighted to be here and says that she shall never leave us.

And we have a splendid great dog, an African hound, he is an enormous fellow just one yard high. He is very useful to put in pictures. 

I have had a present of two lovely turtle-doves. They are perfectly tame and play about the studio all day, often lighting on our shoulders. We fear that they are destined to be eaten by the dog for he is a hunter and at first chased them about, now they will get on his back when he is asleep and he does not like it.'

Gardner, at one point, had as many as twenty-six birds in her aviary! Though they demanded a lot of attention, they were a great comfort to her when she was alone. Her studio and birds were described in her hometown paper, the 'Exeter News-Letter.'

'Elizabeth J. Gardner is a great lover of birds, and the antechamber of her charming apartment in the rue Notre Dame des Champs was filled with cages of her chirping friends. Love-birds and peroquets seemed her favorites, and the cages were large, roomy, wire affairs, where the domestic life of her feathered pets was carried on in great comfort and freedom. Her studio was a large and lofty room, lighted by skylight, and filled with pictures, bric-a-brac and couches, fine rugs, and beautiful tapestries, all in an artistic confusion, which only the unsophisticated philistine could believe was chance. Her salons, through which one wandered to reach the studio, were more conventionally French, but full also of objects of art and virtu. But it was especially in the studio, that Miss Gardner's friends were wont to gather, and there one was sure to meet with cordial welcome, most graciously given, a cup of the tea that cheers, and a company the most interesting and varied, for besides her rank as an artist, Madame Bouguereau has the true New England love of culture, and, being a brilliant conversationalist, gathers about her many clever people.'

Three Salon works that had birds as subjects were, 'Deux mères de famille,' 'Dans le bois,' and 'La Captive.' In 'Deux mères de famille' she is making a moral statement about the healthy young mother's instinctive and entirely wholesome attitude to her child, inscribed as natural by finding its echo in the he and her chicks.' In true academic style, her paintings are 'tinged with moral associations, signifying purity, a striving for the ideal, a belief in the power of beauty, and a respect for tradition and enduring values.' "

To be continued

(Excerpts from "Elizabeth Jane Gardner: Her Life, Her Work, Her Letters," MA Thesis by Charles Pearo, McGill University, 1997)

 

Elizabeth Gardner Bouguereau: Huges Merle

"Maternal Affection" by Hugues Merle

"From Elizabeth Gardner's earliest Salon entries to her latest, she is listed as 'élève [student] de (Hugues) Merle.' In the Salon livret of 1875, Jules Lefebvre is added to the list and, in 1877, we see the first mention of Bouguereau as her teacher. In her August 29 letter 1866 Elizabeth mentions, 'My teacher, Mr. Merle, has just been decorated with the Cross of the Legion of Honor. . . He allows me to go to his studio whenever I please which is a privilege.' 

Hugues Merle was born at Saint-Martin and studied in Paris with Léon Cogniet. He was a genre, portrait and history painter who exhibited at the Salon from 1847 to 1880. Though he is in the Salon catalogue as Elizabeth Gardner's teacher throughout her career, he died in 1881. It is not clear exactly how long she studied with him. She was very fond of the artist and spent the summer of 1873 at Etretat with his family as stated in an excerpt from a letter:

'Mr. Merle, one of the most distinguished French artists has invited me to spend the Summer in his family and offers one half of his studio. I was his pupil and he always takes a great interest in what I am doing. He earns $10,000 a year and when I do the same you shall come out and have a good time.'

Certainly his financial success provided incentive to Gardner to exploit that market through their agents - but more importantly, she was naturally drawn to similar subject matter. Her entire corpus of known paintings is composed of either genre or portraiture. She had reached her mature style very early in her career and maintained it, with minor adaptations."

To be continued

(Excerpts from "Elizabeth Jane Gardner: Her Life, Her Work, Her Letters," MA Thesis by Charles Pearo, McGill University, 1997)

 

Elizabeth Gardner Bouguereau: Securing Commissions

"La Confidence"
by Elizabeth Gardner Bouguereau

"In these early years, Elizabeth Gardner Bouguereau was already making important contacts with American travellers that would secure her commissions for paintings or copies. Some of these early patrons may have heard of her through her influential friend Edward Tuck, some had letters of introduction from residents in Exeter or Boston, still others may have been acquaintances of Imogene Robinson. May of them were women. In 1866 she penned:

'I wrote you that Mrs. Young called on us. She invited us to dinner one evening and we had a cosy time. Mrs. Young professes a profound interest in my welfare and I certainly think her a lovely lady. She and her sister Miss Brayton spent an evening with us and have called to see us several times at the house and the Luxembourg. She has given me an order to paint a picture for her, a copy of one at the Luxembourg which she much admires. She has just left for Italy and I am to have it ready for her on her return in May.'

Visitors to her studio were often treated to small receptions, teas, and, on occasion, intimate dinner parties. In one letter she described such an event:

'Imo made some delicious soup, we had green peas, potatoes and turnips as Americans like them but cannot get from a French cook. Our rôtissier sent us a great turkey and a duck roasted brown and smoking hot. We had pears, oranges and cakes, nuts, figs, etc. Our concierge presided in the kitchen and her son waited on the table. Old Mrs. Morrill was delighted because it was homelike and they have since sent us a written expression of thanks. They have all gone to Spain.' 

The prospect of buying directly from the artist, visiting her studio, and even seeing the work in progress added an air of authenticity to the painting while allowing her patrons a privileged opportunity to come in direct contact with a member of the Parisian art community. She became expert at promoting her own work through her studio. What dominates in her letters, though, is  a work ethic, the sense of being on a mission. Her routine consisted of getting up at the crack of dawn, taking a cold shower, and drinking a warm cup of tea. She continues:

'We were at the table when the clock struck seven. Then we dress and are ready to start off when it is fairly daylight. We reach the Luxembourg at half past eight. I copy there a while and then go to our studio to work from life till dark.'

To be continued

(Excerpts from "Elizabeth Jane Gardner: Her Life, Her Work, Her Letters," MA Thesis by Charles Pearo, McGill University, 1997)