Stanislas-Henri Rouart (2 October 1833, Paris - 2 January 1912, Paris) was a French engineer, industrialist, art collector and painter.
Biography
His father was a wealthy manufacturer of military uniforms. He was a student at the Lycée Louis-le-Grand, where he became a friend of Edgar Degas. Later, he attended the École Polytechnique and studied engineering, but also took art classes. He was an artillery captain in the Franco-Prussian War, and rescued Degas during the Siege of Paris.
He was involved in numerous engineering projects, including tubes for the Paris pneumatic post, a prototype for making "artificial ice", and an engine with external fins for cooling. In his fifties, having participated in the occasional exhibition since 1868, he decided to devote himself entirely to painting. A former student of Corot and Millet, his works were largely Impressionistic in nature.
In addition to painting, he was an avid art collector and a patron of several artists, including Berthe Morisot, Toulouse-Lautrec, and Renoir, as well as his old friend, Degas. Three exhibitions of Impressionist works were held, thanks to his financial support.
