Rosa Bonheur

Trained by her father, landscape painter Raymond Bonheur, her upbringing in a Saint-Simonian family that promoted gender equality provided the foundation for her career.²

MarRosa Bonheur was born on March 16, 1822, in Bordeaux, France.¹

Rosa Bonheur moved to Paris in 1828 at the age of six with her mother and siblings.¹

Rosa Bonheur first exhibited at the Salon in 1841 at the age of 19.³

Exhibited at the 1849 Salon, 'Ploughing in the Nivernais' was a state commission whose powerful depiction of oxen established her as a leading animal painter.²

Her masterpiece 'The Horse Fair' was painted on a massive scale (8x16 feet). Its success at the 1853 Salon secured her international fame.²

Art dealer Ernest Gambart promoted her work in England, leading her to achieve even greater popularity and commercial success there than in her native France.²

In 1859, she purchased the Château de By near Fontainebleau, where she established her studio and lived for the rest of her life surrounded by animals.²

In 1865, she became the first female artist to receive the French Legion of Honour, awarded by Empress Eugénie, marking a milestone for women in art.²

In 1889, she befriended 'Buffalo Bill' Cody, sketching his Wild West Show and painting a famous portrait of him on horseback.²

MayRosa Bonheur died on May 25, 1899, at the age of 77, in Thomery, France.¹