LE NU ESTHETIQUE (1903)

Bayard, Émile (1868-1937)

Leaf from Le nu esthétique: l'homme, la femme, l'enfant: album de documents artistiques inédits d'après nature. Pl. 2, Émile Bayard; préface de J.-L. Gérome, 2ème année, première livraison, octobre 1903

Dimensions: Height 38 cm, Width 28 cm (15 x 11 in)

Émile Bayard was a multi-talented French art historian, illustrator, and photographer. Born into an artistic family—his father of the same name was a prolific illustrator—Bayard studied at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris.

He is best remembered for his highly influential pedagogical books on art history, notably the widely used educational series «L'art de reconnaître les styles» (The Art of Recognising Styles). Beyond his writing, Bayard was a pioneering photographer; in 1902, he published Le Nu esthétique, a series of photographic studies of the human form, and won a gold medal at the first International Exposition of Modern Decorative Arts in Turin that same year. He also contributed illustrations to prominent periodicals of his era, such as Le Monde illustré and L'Assiette au beurre.

In 1905, Bayard was appointed academic inspector for the French Ministry of Public Instruction and Fine Arts, overseeing art education and museums. During World War I, he and his wife founded the Croix Verte (Green Cross) association to support war victims. For his lifelong contributions to French culture and public service, he was awarded the prestigious title of Officer of the Legion of Honour.

His son, Jean Émile-Bayard, continued the family's intellectual legacy as a writer and journalist.