Gustave Moreau (French, 1826 - 1898): Femme Nue. Lithograph on paper, signed in plate, unframed.

Moreau was the darling of the Decadents, representing everything that is mysterious, mythical, unhealthy and half-glimpsed. But if Moreau's reveries on biblical and classical themes thrilled the Decadents, they repulsed a public attuned to a robust academic realism. Moreau was twice rejected when he competed for the prestigious Prix de Rome and during his life he was treated harshly by the critics. Moreau then withdrew from public view and formed a plan to leave his house to the nation as a museum after his death. Having private means, he had no need to compromise in his art.

7.25 x 9.25 inches paper.

North Carolina Estate, USA.

Gustave Moreau (French, 1826 - 1898): Femme Nue. Lithograph on paper, signed in plate, unframed.

Moreau was the darling of the Decadents, representing everything that is mysterious, mythical, unhealthy and half-glimpsed. But if Moreau's reveries on biblical and classical themes thrilled the Decadents, they repulsed a public attuned to a robust academic realism. Moreau was twice rejected when he competed for the prestigious Prix de Rome and during his life he was treated harshly by the critics. Moreau then withdrew from public view and formed a plan to leave his house to the nation as a museum after his death. Having private means, he had no need to compromise in his art.

7.25 x 9.25 inches paper.

North Carolina Estate, USA.