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Thomas Couture

Born: Senlis, 21 December 1815
Died: Villiers-le-Bel, 3 March 1879
Nationality: French
Studies: 

with Antoine-Jean Gros (1830-38) and Paul Delaroche (1838-39) at Ecole des Beaux-Arts (Paris)

Career: 

1837 – Prix de Rome runner up; competes six times between 1834 and 1839 without winning

1840 – exhibits Young Venetians after an Orgy (1840, private collection) and Prodigal Son (1841, Musée des Beaux-Arts, Le Havre) at Paris Salon with positive critical reception

1847 – exhibits Romans of the Decadence at Salon; painting purchased by French government; Couture opens his studio as an alternative to the Ecole des Beaux-Arts

1859 – settles in Senlis

1867 – publishes Studio Methods and Maintenance (Méthodes et entretiens d’atelier)

Important Artworks: 


Self-Portrait, 1848 (Memorial Art Gallery, University of Rochester, NY)

A Realist, 1865 (Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam)