On the Lookout
Artist:
William-Adolphe Bouguereau
(French, 1825 - 1905)
Culture: French
Date: 1896
Medium: Oil on canvas
Dimensions:
51 1/2 x 31 3/4 in. (130.8 x 80.6 cm)
Credit Line: San Antonio Museum of Art, bequest of Gilbert M. Denman, Jr.
Object number: 2005.1.163
Signed: Signed and dated, lower right: W-Bouguereau 1896
Provenance: The artist; Tooth & Sons, London; sold to Knoedler (New York) in December 1898; stockbook no. 8683; Moulton & Ricketts, Chicago, December 1909; private collection, USA; Peiken Galleries (USA); sold Parke-Bernet Galleries, New York, January 27, 1954, lot 79, for $600; with Galerias "La Granja," Mexico City, by 1961; purchased by Gilbert M. Denman Jr., September 1961; his bequest to San Antonio Museum of Art, 2005
Label Text
Lurking in a tree, Cupid, the mischievous god of desire in Greco-Roman mythology, waits to shoot his arrows of love into the hearts of the unwary. A real boy clearly posed for this work, witnessed by his tensed fingers and toes. Yet William-Adolphe Bouguereau has made the scene mythological through the addition of feathery wings, accessorites, and a decorative forest background.
An exceptional craftsman, Bouguereau produced works that combined naturalism, artifice, eroticism, and sentimentality. The artist, who won awards and honors throughout his long career, was the darling of the French artistic establishment and particularly adored by American collectors. At the same time, he also infuriated younger artists, who held him up as everything wrong with the French academic system. In the century since his death, viewers have also been similarly divided.
(William Keyse Rudolph, 2018)
An exceptional craftsman, Bouguereau produced works that combined naturalism, artifice, eroticism, and sentimentality. The artist, who won awards and honors throughout his long career, was the darling of the French artistic establishment and particularly adored by American collectors. At the same time, he also infuriated younger artists, who held him up as everything wrong with the French academic system. In the century since his death, viewers have also been similarly divided.
(William Keyse Rudolph, 2018)
On view
In Collection(s)
The San Antonio Museum of Art is in the process of digitizing its permanent collection. This electronic record was created from historic documentation that does not necessarily reflect SAMA's complete or current knowledge about the object. Review and updating of such records is ongoing.
This resource has been made possible in part by the National Endowment for the Humanities: Exploring the Human Endeavor.
