Gustave Moreau (Born 1826) was born in Paris. He was a leading figure in painting with an emphasis on the illustration of mythological and biblical figures. His art appealed to the imaginations of some Symbolist artists and writers. His father was an architect, who recognized Moreau’s talent at an early age. Moreau initially studied under the guidance of Picot François Édouard and became a friend of Chassériau Théodore, whose work strongly influenced his own. Moreau’s first painting was a Pietà, a very attractive piece. The painting is now found in the cathedral at Angoulême. Moreau had a 25-year romantic relationship with Dureux Adelaide Alexandrine, the lady whom he later married. One of his first symbolist paintings, “Oedipus and the Sphinx,” was exhibited at the Salon of 1864. The exhibition was very successful that he quickly gained a reputation.
The painting can currently be seen in the permanent collection of the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art. His wife died in 1890 and her death affected him greatly. His work after the death of his wife contains a more melancholic edge. Moreau became a professor in October 1891 at Paris' School of Fine Arts and among his many students were Georges Rouault and Henri Matisse who were both fauvist painters. Léon Printemps, Theodor Pallady and Jules Flandrin also studied with him. Moreau died of stomach cancer and 1898 and was buried in Paris at the Cemetery of Montmartre in his parents’ tomb. This is the same place where his wife was also buried.
