Eugene Delacroix

Regarded as one of the greatest French Romantic painters of the 19th century, Ferdinand Victor Eugène Delacroix (1798 - 1863) was well known for his use of lush, agitated brushwork and explorations of the optical effects of color. His works had a significant impact on the style of Impressionism, while his passion for the exotic subject matter influenced exponents in the Nabis and Symbolism movement. Eugene Delacroix paintings for sale featured on Bidsquare’s online auction remain competitively priced and are sought after by avid collectors and bidders alike.

He deviated from the Neoclassical perfectionism style of academic art as embodied by Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres in which order, regularity, and a sense of control prevailed, and took for his inspiration the more colorful style of painters such as Peter Paul Rubens, and Théodore Géricault whose works introduced the romantic style into art as well as painters of the Venetian Renaissance. The emphasis of Eugene Delacroix's paintings was more on color and movement instead of emphasizing outlines and forms, both in terms of subject matter and technique, favoring scenes from contemporary history, the paintings mostly of a romantic or dramatic nature. Despite being a classically trained artist, he became an inspiration to many young artists breaking with the conventions of classical narrative painting with his use of brilliant color, exotic locations, and provocative subjects.

Aside from his artwork, Delacroix was also highly regarded for his works in lithography. He explored the newly invented medium to create exquisite illustrations of the works of William Shakespeare, the German writer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, and the Scottish writer Sir Walter Scott. Throughout his distinguished career, he gained a reputation as a free thinker who was filled with inspiration and creativity during his career.

The poet Charles Baudelaire championed the work of Eugene Delacroix after his death and was a powerful influence on Pablo Picasso, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, and Vincent Van Gogh. Today, the majority of Delacroix’s works are held in the collections of the Louvre Museum in Paris, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, the Institute of Chicago, the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, and the National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, among others.

Interesting Facts about Eugene Delacroix

• Delacroix’s first major work “The Barque of Dante” (1822) marked the shift from a Neoclassical perspective toward Romanticism.
• Delacroix decorated multiple public buildings in Paris.
• In 2018, Delacroix’s painting Tigre jouant avec une tortue (Tiger Playing with a Tortoise) (1862) was sold at Christie’s for $9,875,000, breaking an auction record for the artist.