A Portrait of Tender Love – The Breton Brother and Sister
This delightful portrait by the 19th century French artist, William-Adolphe Bouguereau (1825 –1905), is a beautiful sacred window – a snapshot really – into a moment of an older sister’s tender love and care for her little brother.
Entitled the “Breton Brother and Sister”, it was painted in 1871 based on sketches the artist had made in the 1860s when he visited Brittany, the westernmost province of France.
These Bretons siblings are dressed in typical garb of peasants of that time and region. Both are barefoot and they’ve gone into the woods to pick apples or they’ve brought their lunch with them as they enjoy their day out together.
Bouguereau was a portrait painter of French high society and known for his classical and unfeigned naturalism, which is obvious in this portrait. The faces of the children convey the pure innocence of youth, with a pristine beauty that radiates from every inch of the canvas. Every detail, from the curls in the boy’s hair to the patterns and folds of the girl’s shirt, is crisp and expressive.
It is said that Bouguereau became such a popular painter of the French Salon due to his ability to “enhance” the beauty of his female models while at the same time remaining faithful to their likeness. No wonder he became so popular!
Some of the painter’s most beloved images are religious although he was a voluminous painter of Greek mythological scenes. As with this painting, the older sister/younger sibling motif is among the most favorite of all Bouguereau’s themes. The Madonna and mother-child motif is another (about which I will offer more later.)
Here is the full painting in all its delightful, innocent beauty.
Photo Credit: William-Adolphe Bouguereau, Public Domain via WikiArt.