Adolphe Jourdan


Adolphe Jourdan was a French painter.

Early life and education

Adolphe Jourdan was born on 4 August 1825 in Nîmes, France.
His father, a drawing instructor in Nîmes, introduced him to art before he trained in Paris with Léon Cogniet, Paul Delaroche, and Charles Jalabert. In the mid-1840s, he began his training as a painter at the School of Fine Arts in Paris, studying under French painter Charles Jalabert.

Career

Adolphe Jourdan earned the prize of honor at the 1863 Exposition Régionale des Beaux-Arts in Nîmes for his single painting on display.
The native of Nimes began exhibiting at the annual Paris Salon held by the Académie des Beaux-Arts in 1855, receiving medals in 1864, 1866, and 1869. In 1864, his piece titled Leda earned him a medal at the exhibition and praise from Théophile Gautier. He received another medal in 1866 for The Secrets of Love. In 1869, he exhibited A Reading and Young Fishers, with the latter acquired by the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Nîmes.
Jourdan was ranked among France's popular painters alongside Jean-Léon Gérôme and Alexandre Cabanel.
Employed by a Parisian art dealer, he painted replicas of masterworks, notably Cabanel's The [Birth of Venus (Cabanel)|The Birth of Venus], frequently mistaken for the original.
In 1874, Vincent van Gogh expressed his admiration for him in letters to his brother Theo [van Gogh (art dealer)|Theo].
At the 1877 Salon, Adolphe Jourdan exhibited A Breakfast at Saint-Honorat. In 1876, he showcased The Good-By and The Three Friends. During the 1876 Johnston sale in New York, A Young Italian Mother sold for $2,300. At the 1878 Salon, he presented a portrait and The Banks of the Gardon.
Jourdan later became the director of the Nîmes School of Fine Arts.
At the Salon of 1888, Jourdan exhibited a portrait of Gaston Boissier.

Death

Adolphe Jourdan died on 22 February 1889 in Nîmes, France.

Works

  • The 4 Seasons
  • Young Winemaker
  • Bathing Girl
  • Leda
  • Cupid's Secrets
  • Venus and Cupid
  • Meditation
  • Young Italian Mother
  • Pursuit
  • Little Girl
  • Parting
  • Three Friends
  • Breakfast at Saint-Honorat
  • On the Banks of the Gardon
  • Venus
  • Nurse
  • Mother and Child
  • The First Step
  • Girl with a Shell
  • Woman Charming a Bird
  • First Smiles
  • Study
  • Une Loge
  • Brindisi