Scandinavian Pupils of the Atelier Bonnat, 1867-1894

This study examines the role of French painter Léon Bonnat in reforming art education in the 19th century Paris. It examines his relationship with the Scandinavian pupils in his private teaching students, analyzing the impact of French art upon the techniques, aims and achievements of art in Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden. Also examines the opportunities and facilities of women artists within this framework. With illustrations.

“This is one of the most far-reaching studies of the cultural cross-currents in late nineteenth-century Europe. . . . Viewing French art through the eyes of Scandinavian artists not only tells us a great deal about the nature of art in Denmark, Sweden, Finland and Norway, but brings a refreshingly new perspective to our understanding of French art. . . . Student of French art will find a fascinating case study of a major teacher whose relationship with his predecessors and with the Academy are fully explored. . . . To any scholar with an interest in the attraction of Paris for artists in this period, this book will provide a model of its kind.” – J. J. L. Whiteley, Ashmolean Museum, Oxford

“. . . the author considers Bonnat’s impact on a whole range of areas, filling the many lacunae still abounding with respect to the artistic education he provided in his private studios, the Scandinavian artists in Paris who came to him for tuition, and the facilities he provided for women artists to study. . . . Dr. Challons-Lipton has carried out copious research on these matters, using her fluent knowledge of French and Swedish. . . investigating archives in Paris and Bayonne, as well as in Scandinavia itself, especially Stockholm. Artists’ letters, diaries, as well as other literary and visual material, including pictures, were examined and play a crucial role in her research. . . an innovative and scholarly exploration of a fascinating and largely unexplored subject offering a vista in which it has become possible to make interesting linkages amongst Scandinavian artists and the world of Parisian arts and studios, still with relevance for the art world today.” – Neil Kent, Cambridge

“Supported by comprehensive unpublished primary source material, together with an impartial view of French nineteenth century painting, Challons-Lipton convincingly reveals the crucial influence that this French artist had over the many Scandinavian artists who went to France to study under him. She gives an informed description of Bonnat’s teaching methods and provides the reader with detailed information about his style of painting. . . . succeeds, furthermore, in showing that this knowledge later reached the Scandinavian educational institutions, which impacted artists at the turn of the century, who were initially trained in methods originating in Bonnat’s studio. The writer also observes the central role that women played in the Scandinavian artists’ colony in Paris. . . . helps both to re-examine nineteenth-century French art, and establish which French artists were most admired by Scandinavian painters in Paris and what they absorbed.” – Dr. Tomas Björk, Stockholm University