Louis-Maurice Boutet de Monvel

Louis-Maurice Boutet de Monvel (18 October 1850 – 16 March 1913) was a French painter and illustrator best known for his watercolours for children's books. He was a major figure in nineteenth-century children's book illustration. Early life and education Boutet de Monvel was born in Orléans, 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. He began attending the École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts in early 1870. 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. He also worked with Carolus-Duran. Paintings In 1873 he exhibited for the first time at the Salon, showing a painting entitled Temptation. He won a bronze medal in 1878 for The Good Samaritan and a silver medal in 1880 for The Lesson Before the Sabbath.