Eugène Delacroix
The painter of revolutionary fervor who turned color and emotion into a radical new language for the 19th century.
1798–1863 (age 65)·French painter·Birthday: April 26
Biography
Eugène Delacroix stormed onto the Parisian art scene not with a whisper, but with the violent beauty of 'The Barque of Dante' and the revolutionary charge of 'Liberty Leading the People.' Where the establishment prized neoclassical calm and line, Delacroix dealt in the turbulence of color, emotion, and exoticism. He found his subjects not just in contemporary upheavals, but in the literary worlds of Shakespeare and Goethe, and the sun-drenched intensity of North Africa, which he visited in 1832. That journey infused his palette with new light and his notebooks with scenes that would fuel decades of work. Though he battled the critics of the Salon for acceptance, he steadily received major public commissions, covering the walls of libraries and churches with epic murals. More than just the standard-bearer of French Romanticism, Delacroix was a bridge, his loose brushwork and passionate intensity directly inspiring the Impressionists who would follow, making him a father of modern painting's visceral power.
#1 When Eugène Was Born
The biggest hits of 1798
Eugène's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1798Born
1803Started school
1811Became a teenager
1814Could drive
1816Could vote
1819Turned 21
1828Turned 30
1838Turned 40
1848Turned 50
1858Turned 60
1863Died at 65
President: Abraham Lincoln
Key Achievements
- Painted 'Liberty Leading the People' (1830), an enduring symbol of revolution and French national identity.
- Executed large-scale mural cycles for the Bourbon Palace, the Luxembourg Palace, and the Church of Saint-Sulpice in Paris.
- His painting 'The Death of Sardanapalus' (1827) scandalized the Salon with its violent, sensual depiction of Orientalist themes.
- Was a major influence on the Impressionist movement, particularly admired by artists like Vincent van Gogh.
Did You Know?
He kept a detailed journal for much of his life, offering profound insights into his artistic process and 19th-century Paris.
There were persistent rumors that his biological father was the statesman Charles Maurice de Talleyrand.
He was a great admirer of the English landscape painter J.M.W. Turner.
Despite his reputation for fiery art, he was known to be reserved and meticulously neat in his personal habits.
“The first merit of a painting is to be a feast for the eyes.”
