GUILLAUME SEIGNAC | REFLECTIONS

Sale: Sotheby's, New York, October 31, 1985, lot 56, illustrated 

Academic paintings of classically draped maidens in timeless landscapes enjoyed a considerable vogue in the late nineteenth century. In England, John William Godward (see lot 479) and Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema (see lot 478) explored this theme, as William Bouguereau and his pupil Guillaume Seignac did in France. Bouguereau thought of Seignac like a son, and may have guided his student toward a career which included works like Reflections. The present work's balanced composition, classical lines and well-modeled form, inspired by Antique and Renaissance examples, follows Bouguereau's technique, while the palette of colors is characteristically Seignac.