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Louis Maurice Boutet de Monvel
From Paris to Page Turns
Caleb Allen
March 17, 2025
[Boutet de Monvel] marked a high point in the illustration of French children’s books at the close of the nineteenth century, and it influenced enormously the picture-book for children in the twentieth century. Boutet de Monvel’s illustrations in, for which he also wrote the text, are considered his finest and most important work.
This assessment by Gerald Gottlieb summarizes the profound impact of Louis Maurice Boutet de Monvel, a French painter and illustrator whose groundbreaking work revolutionized the field of children's book illustration. His unique style, characterized by a blend of simplicity and elegance, not only captivated young readers but also inspired generations of illustrators to come.
Boutet de Monvel was born in 1851 and initially pursued a career as a painter, and at one point had enough work in portraits he contemplated stopping his work on picture books. However, his path took a different turn, leading him to become one of the most important non-English illustrators from the Golden Age of illustration. His watercolors for children's books, widely regarded as his finest and most important contributions to the art world, solidified his position as a major figure in nineteenth-century children's book illustration.
Early Life
Boutet de Monvel was born in Orléans, a place significant for its association with Joan of Arc, the French national heroine, and the subject of his masterpiece Jeanne d’Arc. He was the second of nine children; his father, Benjamin Boutet de Monvel (1820–1880), was a physics and chemistry professor. His maternal grandfather was the tenor Adolphe Nourrit (1802–1839), and there were other artists in the family. He lived mainly in Paris as a child.
In early 1870, he began attending the École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts. During the Franco-Prussian War, he served in the French army. With the return of peace, he began attending the Académie Julian, where he worked with Gustave Boulanger and Jules Lefèbvre, both major influences on his early work.
His dream had been to paint large canvases depicting dramatic scenes in the academic tradition. He exhibited his first canvas, "Tentation" (Temptation), at the Salon in 1873. In 1878, he received a bronze medal for "Le bon samaritain" (The Good Samaritan), and a silver medal in 1880 for "La leçon avant le sabbat" (The lesson before the Sabbath). However, his works during this period primarily focused on chiaroscuro and were heavily influenced by classical academic style of the time.
Boutet de Monvel spent some time working under the tutelage of Carolus-Duran (1837-1911), whose use of color was considered revolutionary at the time, to brighten his palette and move away from the dark, coal-like tones. However, the key turning point in his artistic development was his voyage to Algeria in 1876, where one of his brothers resided. The light of Kabylie was a revelation to him. While staying in Borj Bou Arreridj, he painted Mansourah and the surrounding area before heading to Constantine and returning via Tunisia. He returned to Algeria in 1878 and again in 1880. These three trips to Algeria would definitively alter his painting style. From then on, Boutet de Monvel worked outdoors, and his palette, dominated by shades of orange and blue.
Boutet de Monvel's multiple experiences and trips to Algeria had a profound impact on his artistic development. The intense light and vivid colors of North Africa transformed his palette and inspired him to adopt a more minimalist approach to form and composition. These stylistic innovations would become vital to his style as an illustrator.
Supporting Children
Of course, I found out directly that I could not put in the mass of little things which I had elaborated on my canvasses. Gradually, through a process of elimination and selection, I came to put in only what was necessary to give the character. I sought in every little figure, every group, the essence, and worked for that alone. [I searched for what] we may call the soul, the spirit of the object represented… This is the lesson taught me by the necessity of expressing much with the thin, encircling line of the pen.
In 1876, he married Jeanne Labaigue of Orléans. Their first child was born three years later. Their son Roger would become a writer, and their son Bernard would become a painter. The need to support his family pushed him into commercial illustration. (ah yes, the classic artist dilemma: "I have these grand visions of painting dramatic historical scenes... but first, I need to pay the rent") In 1881, he illustrated a children's reader, and this opened further commissions to illustrate children's books. He was the illustrator of the French edition of St. Nicholas, the famous magazine for boys and girls, and contributed pictures to Century and Scribner's magazines as well.
Boutet de Monvel's work stood out for its simplicity and clarity in an era when children's book illustrations often featured intricate, highly detailed scenes. His bold, flat colors and strong lines were a departure from the prevailing styles of the time, and his ability to convey character and emotion through minimal means was groundbreaking. This approach to illustration was not unique to Boutet de Monvel. In England, Randolph Caldecott was also pioneering a simpler, more expressive style of children's book illustration. Caldecott's work, like Boutet de Monvel's, relied on clean lines, clear colors, and a focus on character and action rather than ornate detail. Both artists understood that for children's illustrations to be effective, they needed to be immediately engaging and easily readable. Their shared commitment to simplicity and clarity would help to define the golden age of children's book illustration and set a new standard for the genre on both sides of the English Channel.
In 1881, Boutet de Monvel agreed to illustrate "Les pourquoi de Mademoiselle Suzanne" (Miss Suzanne's Questions) by Emile Desbeaux. That same year, he illustrated "La France en Zigzag" (Zig-zagging Across France), a reading book by Eudoxie Dupuis published by Charles Delagrave (1842-1934). Delagrave, thrilled by the pureness and originality of Boutet de Monvel's creations, then offered him the opportunity to illustrate "Saint Nicolas: Journal illustré pour garçons et filles" (Saint Nicolas: An Illustrated Magazine for Boys and Girls).
The success achieved by the new book, particularly the illustrations created by Boutet de Monvel for the nursery rhymes and dances found within, was such that in 1882, he conceived the idea of illustrating a collection of French children's songs in color. The resulting book, "Vieilles Chansons et Rondes pour les Petits Enfants" (Old Songs and Rounds for Children), was published in 1883 and followed in 1884 by "Chansons de France pour les Petits Français" (French Songs for Little Frenchmen). In 1886, Boutet de Monvel's illustrations for Anatole France's "Nos Enfants" (Our Children) verified his genius in portraying the spirit of childhood. Other books for children followed, many of which were translated into English in the early 1900s.
His pictures of children, based on memories of his earlier keen observations of his own young brothers and sisters at home and at play, charmed the public and were admired for his genius in capturing the moods and expressions of his subjects. He was soon sought after to paint portraits of children from leading families in French and international society and continued these two careers simultaneously. At one point, he considered giving up book illustration altogether because he was so busy with commissions for portraits. Fortunately for posterity, he continued to illustrate children's books, and his magnificent "Jeanne d'Arc" was born.
Crafting a Masterpiece
In 1895, Boutet de Monvel published an illustrated children's history of Joan of Arc, widely regarded as his masterpiece. Boutet de Monvel wrote his own text for the book, but he was neither a writer nor a historian, and it is his illustrations that live on. The epic pictures for his artistic monument bring to mind the sort of dramatic scenes he had set out to paint early in his career, but with a difference.
The epic scenes in this work show the influence of two late-medieval painters: Fra Angelico in the use of modeling and Paolo Uccello in the composition of battle scenes. Boutet de Monvel's illustrations, drawn with a strong line and clear, harmonious colors, received critical acclaim, despite his own disappointment in the quality of the reproductions, which had been done using zincotype, a then-new photoengraving process.
The illustrations found in "Joan of Arc" are both charming and somber. Boutet de Monvel employed a muted color palette to capture the serious subject matter, which he described as "…not color, really, it is the impression, the suggestion of color…" This approach allowed him to convey the emotional depth and historical significance of Joan of Arc's story while still appealing to young readers.
The book was an immediate success and brought Boutet de Monvel international recognition. The work's enduring popularity is a testament to Boutet de Monvel's skill in crafting a compelling visual narrative that continues to impress audiences more than a century after its initial publication.
Unfortunately, I was not able to find much written about Monvel’s time as a soldier in the Franco-Prussian War, in the Army of the Loire. I would be curious to know Boutet de Movel’s inspirations for Joan of Arc and why he created this children’s book decades later. Was it a sense of national identity? Or was Boutet de Monvel dealing with any possible trauma or uncertainty about the time period he lived in and he found solace in the images he creates? Maybe even a reason I’m not thinking of, but personally speaking, I illustrate things that help me find peace and meditation in my emotions, a way to cope with struggles.
As an illustrator myself, I find this fascinating. When I'm struggling with difficult emotions or trying to make sense of the world, I often turn to my studio. Recently, I found myself drawing a series of sketches after a particularly lousy day. So I can't help but wonder: was Boutet de Monvel's Joan of Arc his way of processing his own experiences of war? Was he, like me, using his art as a form of meditation? Here was a man who was a soldier in the Franco-Prussian War, creating a children's book about France's most famous warrior-saint decades later. The connection seems too obvious to be mere coincidence.The images and scenes he illustrated so vividly depict war, unrest and difficult subjects. Whether deliberate or not, these choices help young readers cope, providing them with a powerful visual narrative that speaks to themes of resilience, heroism and identity.
Boutet de Monvel's work serves as a reminder of the complex and often overlapping possible motivations that drive artistic creation in this sense. Whether his illustrations were born out pride and identity or of a deeply personal need to process and cope with the challenges of his time, they have taken on a life of their own, offering comfort, inspiration, and a sense of shared history to countless readers over the years.
Boutet de Monvel’s full-page illustrations have a nobility and grandeur akin to the great church frescoes of the Renaissance. Their pleasingly flat rendering combined with a sophisticated use of design elements…owe a debt to the Japanese prints so popular in the artist’s day.
Boutet de Monvel’s reputation also spread to America. He had been submitting drawings for The Century Magazine, and his books of children’s illustrations proved so popular that it was said that sweet and well-behaved young children were often praised by their parents as ‘my little Boutet’. Exhibitions of Boutet de Monvel’s work were mounted in 1889 at the Art Institute of Chicago, the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston and the Philadelphia Academy of Fine Arts. The artist was occupied for several years between 1906 and 1913 with a commission for six paintings of scenes from the life of Joan of Arc for the American collector William A. Clark; the paintings are today in the Corcoran Gallery of Art in Washington D.C. Among his last major projects was an illustrated life of Saint Francis of Assisi, which was eventually published in 1921, several years after the death of the artist. A retrospective exhibition of Boutet de Monvel’s work – the first to be held in Paris – was mounted in 1913 at the Parisian gallery of Michel Manzi and Maurice Joyant.
Boutet de Monvel is still considered a master of the children's illustration genre for the originality of his work. His style has been praised for its lack of unnecessary detail. It has been noted that his images provide "a revelation of a subject which the writer has treated only in a fragmentary and superficial manner." He has been ranked alongside Crane, Caldecott and Greenaway as a leading figure of the 19th century's golden era of children's book illustration.
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Son, Bernard Boutet De Monvel - https://hadadifineart.com/artists/35-bernard-boutet-de-monvel/biography/
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