Chien couché

Jacques Raymond Brascassat prints celebrate the animals of the French countryside: powerful bulls, grazing cows, rams, goats and the occasional lion, drawn with remarkable accuracy. Brascassat was one of the leading animal painters of 19th-century France, and he also painted fine landscapes in Italy and Normandy. Our collection of fine art prints includes his animal studies, farm scenes and views of Capri, Ischia and Trouville.

About Jacques Raymond Brascassat

Jacques Raymond Brascassat was born in Bordeaux on 30 August 1804, the son of a cooper. At twelve he was apprenticed to a decorator, and the landscape painter Théodore Richard, who also adopted him, helped him into the Bordeaux drawing school. He went on to study under Louis Hersent at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris, and won second prize for historical landscape in the Prix de Rome of 1825.

With a royal pension he spent four years in Italy, painting landscapes between 1826 and 1830. From 1835 he devoted himself to animals, and works such as Bulls Fighting (1837) made his name. He studied the Dutch animal painters, including Aelbert Cuyp and Paulus Potter, on later travels.

In 1836 he bought a small farm on Montmartre, where his studio stood next to the cowshed. He was elected to the Académie des Beaux-Arts in 1846, taught Charles-François Daubigny, and retired to Magny-les-Hameaux in 1858. He died in Paris on 28 February 1867.

Style and Subjects

Brascassat was admired above all for the accuracy of his observation and drawing. His bulls and cows are solid and heavy, with every fold of hide and twist of horn in place, often set against a calm pasture or a great oak. He also made many lithographs and, late in life, detailed etchings of animals.

His Italian and Normandy landscapes are lighter and freer: rocky coasts, castles and farm buildings in warm Mediterranean or soft northern light. Many of the store's prints are drawings and oil sketches, which show his working method.

Famous Works

• Bulls Fighting (1837), Musée d'Arts de Nantes. Two bulls locked in combat, one of his best-known paintings.
• Cow Attacked by Wolves (1845), Museum of Fine Arts, Leipzig. A dramatic struggle in the pasture.
• Spaniel with a Still Life of Dead Game (1837), Museum of Fine Arts, Houston. A hunting dog guarding the day's game.
• Study of a Bull, Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam. A close study of the animal he painted most.
• Cowherd and His Herd in the Roman Campagna, near the Via Appia (1830), National Galleries of Scotland. A pastoral view from his Italian years.
• Château de Capri. A castle on the island of Capri.
• Landscape at Trouville. The Normandy coast in soft northern light.

Decorating with Brascassat Prints

Brascassat's bulls, cows and rams are a natural fit for a farmhouse kitchen, a country dining room or a cosy den. Their earthy browns, greens and creams sit well with wood beams, stone and leather.

His Italian views of Capri and Ischia and his Normandy landscapes bring light and calm to a living room, bedroom or sunny hallway. The animal studies look good in a study or library hung as a small group. Choose gilt or dark wood frames for a classic look.

FAQ

Who was Jacques Raymond Brascassat?

Jacques Raymond Brascassat (1804–1867) was a French painter and printmaker from Bordeaux, known above all for his animal paintings and also for his landscapes.

What is Brascassat's most famous painting?

Bulls Fighting (1837) in the Musée d'Arts de Nantes is one of his best-known works, along with Cow Attacked by Wolves (1845) in Leipzig.

Who did Brascassat study with?

He trained in Bordeaux with Théodore Richard and Jean-Baptiste Dubourdieu, and in Paris with Louis Hersent at the École des Beaux-Arts.

Where can I see Brascassat's work?

The museums of Bordeaux, Nantes, Beaune, Dijon and Orléans hold his paintings, and others are in Houston, Leipzig, the Wallace Collection in London and the Rijksmuseum.

Did Brascassat paint Zarafa the giraffe?

Yes. His painting of Zarafa, the giraffe sent to Charles X by Muhammad Ali of Egypt, passing Arnay-le-Duc in 1827, is in the Musée des Beaux-Arts in Beaune.

Related Artists

• Charles-François Daubigny: his pupil, later a leading Barbizon landscape painter
• Louis Hersent: his teacher at the École des Beaux-Arts
• Paulus Potter: Dutch animal painter he studied on his travels
• Aelbert Cuyp: Dutch painter of cattle whose work he studied
• Rosa Bonheur: the other great French animal painter of the century