Jean-Léon Gérôme, a distinguished representative of academicism, was born on May 11, 1824, in Vesoul, Eastern France, and died on January 10, 1904, in Paris. He became famous for his paintings on oriental, mythological, and historical themes. He was one of the most renowned painters of his time. Crowds gathered to view his works, and through numerous reproductions of his paintings in the form of photogravure, he reached an unprecedented scale of art audiences during his lifetime.
According to the myth, the King of Cyprus, Pygmalion, claimed that all the women surrounding him were harlots, which is why he never married. One day, he carved a statue of a perfectly beautiful woman out of white marble. He named her Galatea (Greek: galáteia, Latin: galatea – milk-white). None of the living could match her beauty. The artist admired the perfect, extraordinary figure until he himself fell in love with his creation. He suffered terribly because the marble could not reciprocate his feelings. Thanks to Venus, his passionate love and tender kisses made the cold marble statue come to life.
