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.)