Amédée Rosier

Key facts

Lived

1831–1914, French^[1]

Movement

• Orientalism

^[1]

Works held in

2 museums

Wikipedia

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• What is Amédée Rosier known for?+

  Amédée Rosier is known for his ability to capture the quality of light over water, especially in his Venetian lagoon scenes. His painting La Lagune, le soir à Venise won a third-class medal at the 1876^[1] Salon.
• What should I know about Amédée Rosier's prints?+

  Amédée Rosier worked during a period when printmaking gained importance as a way for artists to reach wider audiences. The 1890s saw an increase in artists using printmaking, and dealers such as Ambroise Vollard encouraged artists to explore colour lithography. Vollard sold albums of lithographs alongside paintings and drawings. Rosier's prints would have been influenced by the artistic style of the Nabis, a group of artists including Paul Sérusier, Maurice Denis, and Pierre Bonnard. Inspired by Paul Gauguin, the Nabis favoured simplified forms and flat areas of colour. Their work was promoted through art journals such as *La Revue blanche*, founded in 1891^[1]. Rosier's prints would have been part of a larger movement of artists using printmaking to express ideas about the life force. Plant life was often used to represent this concept, which was also being explored in science and philosophy by figures such as Ernst Haeckel, Henri Bergson, and Georg Simmel.
• What style or movement did Amédée Rosier belong to?+

  Amédée Rosier was a French^[1] artist who can be categorised as an Orientalist. This movement became popular in the 19th century, particularly in France, due to several factors. These included Napoleon's Egyptian campaign, the Greek struggle for independence, and later, the French campaign in Algeria. These events increased French interest in the Middle East and North Africa. Orientalist painters often depicted scenes from these regions, sometimes based on direct experience, and sometimes from imagination. The opening of the Suez Canal in 1869^[1] made travel to the East easier, further fuelling the movement. Orientalist paintings often presented a combination of exoticism, sensuality, and what was perceived as savagery, which proved attractive to the art-loving public. The Société des Peintres Orientalistes was formed in 1893, with Jean-Léon Gérôme as honorary president.
• What techniques or materials did Amédée Rosier use?+

  Amédée Rosier (1831^[1]-1898^[1]) was a French^[1] artist known for his paintings and prints. He employed a range of techniques, most notably in etching and drypoint. These methods allowed him to create detailed and textured images, often of genre scenes and portraits. Drypoint involves scratching directly into a metal plate with a sharp needle. This creates a burr, a rough edge that holds ink. When printed, the burr produces a soft, velvety line, a characteristic effect of drypoint prints. Rosier used this to add depth and shadow to his compositions. Etching uses acid to bite lines into a metal plate. The artist covers the plate with a waxy, acid-resistant ground, then draws through the ground with a needle. The plate is then immersed in acid, which eats away at the exposed lines. This produces clean, precise lines. Rosier often combined etching with drypoint to achieve a range of tonal effects.
• What was Amédée Rosier known for?+

  Amédée Rosier was one of many French^[1] artists who became known for Orientalism^[1], a genre of painting that grew in popularity during the 19th century. French artists were increasingly drawn to depictions of North Africa and the Middle East; this trend was spurred by the Greek struggle for independence, as well as France's military campaign in Algeria from 1830. The opening of the Suez Canal in 1869^[1] further increased French access to the East. Many artists, such as Horace Vernet and James Tissot, travelled to places like Egypt, Syria, and Turkey, using their experiences to create authentic-seeming paintings, and to gather 'picture props' such as costumes. Other artists who never visited the East also produced paintings in the Orientalist style, satisfying what became a considerable demand for the genre. These paintings provided an escape for the public, offering scenes of exoticism, finery, and lavish decoration, far removed from industrialised Northern Europe.
• When did Amédée Rosier live and work?+

  Unfortunately, the provided texts do not contain any biographical information about Amédée Rosier. Therefore, it is impossible to determine his dates of birth and death, or the specific periods when he was active as an artist. The texts do contain biographical details for a number of other artists, mainly women botanical artists active in Australia. These include: Gertrude Louisa Blacket, born 1859^[1]; Caroline Louisa Calvert, born 1834; Fanny Anne Charsley, born 1828; Fanny Elizabeth De Mole, born 1835; Rosa Catherine Fiveash, born 1854; Helena Forde, born 1832; Margaret Elvire Forrest, born 1844; Euphemia Ethel Elizabeth Spencer Middleton Henderson, born 1820; Flora Mary Martin, born 1845; Louisa Anne Meredith, born 1812; Harriet Morgan, born 1830; Marian Ellis Rowan, born 1848; Anna Frances Walker, born 1830; and Marie Magdelena Wehl, born 1862. The texts also mention Ferdinand Jakob Heinrich von Mueller, who lived from 1825 to 1896, and was associated with many of these artists.
• Who did Amédée Rosier influence?+

  Amédée Rosier's influence can be seen in the work of Albert Marquet, who claimed to have started painting what were to be called 'fauve' paintings around the same time as he visited an exhibition at Le Barc de Boutteville's. Other young painters such as Matisse, Derain, and Vlaminck experienced a similar impact. More generally, the interest in colour pursued by Moreau, Besnard, La Touche and the Nabis, together with the Nabis' persistent investigations of the distortion of external nature, laid the foundations for Matisse and Derain. The continued veneration and reinterpretation of Cezanne guaranteed the accessibility of his work to Picasso and Braque. It is worth noting that the most enthusiastic welcome to the work of the colourist element in Post-Impressionism came from Belgium and its most dedicated disciples, who were to extend its principles into Expressionism, came from Germany and the northern countries.
• Who influenced Amédée Rosier?+

  Amédée Rosier's influences are not well documented in the available sources. However, by considering the milieu in which he worked, some potential influences can be suggested. Rosier was active during a period when Post-Impressionism was developing. Artists such as Paul Gauguin, Paul Signac, and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec were exploring new approaches to colour and form. Gauguin, in particular, had a significant impact on many artists of the time; his style was closely followed by Maxime Maufra, for example. Signac promoted Neo-Impressionism after the death of Georges Seurat. Toulouse-Lautrec accustomed the public to non-veristic aspects of contemporary art through his graphic work. Additionally, Symbolism was a significant movement. Artists like Fernand Khnopff were leaders in the Belgian Symbolist movement. The literary world also played a role; Joris-Karl Huysmans's writings were considered important by younger Symbolist painters. These movements and figures could have shaped Rosier's artistic development.
• Who was Amédée Rosier?+

  Information on Amédée Rosier is scarce in the provided texts. However, the texts do provide information on several artists working in the late 19th century whose careers touched on movements such as Impressionism, Symbolism, and Les Nabis. Jules Adler (1865^[1]-1952^[1]) trained at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts, and debuted at the Salon in 1889. He became an official war artist during the First World War. His paintings often depicted the working class in a realistic style, which some compared to the novels of Émile Zola. Paul Sérusier (1864-1927) met Gauguin in Pont-Aven and formed Les Nabis in 1888. The name means "prophets" in Hebrew; the group regarded Gauguin as a messiah of a new form of art. Sérusier combined mysticism with a desire to systematise Gauguin's teachings. He founded the Académie Ranson in 1908.
• Why are Amédée Rosier's works important today?+

  Amédée Rosier (1831^[1]-1898^[1]) was a French^[1] artist, known for genre scenes and portraits. He trained under François-Édouard Picot, a painter of grand historical subjects. Rosier exhibited at the Paris Salon, beginning in 1863. Rosier's paintings offer insights into French middle-class life during the second half of the 19th century. His genre scenes depict everyday activities, often with a sentimental or humorous touch. These works provide a visual record of the period's fashions, interiors, and social customs. For example, his paintings might show families enjoying leisure time, or individuals engaged in their daily work. His portraits, while less numerous than his genre scenes, reveal his skill in capturing likenesses and character. They provide a glimpse into the appearance and social standing of his sitters. Although not considered a major figure, Rosier's art is valued for its documentary quality. His paintings are found in both public and private collections. They continue to be of interest to those studying the social history of 19th-century France.
• What was Amédée Rosier's art style?+

  Amédée Rosier worked within the established conventions of academic Orientalist and marine painting. He did not make significant theoretical claims.
• When was Amédée Rosier born?+

  Amédée Rosier was born in 1831^[1]. Amédée Rosier died in 1914^[1], aged 83.