Skip to content

Questions about Jean-Léon Gérôme

Short answers, pulled from the story.

When and where was Jean-Léon Gérôme born?

Jean-Léon Gérôme was born on the 11th of May 1824 in Vesoul, a town in the Haute-Saône region of France.

What painting launched the career of Jean-Léon Gérôme?

The Cock Fight earned him a third-class medal at the Paris Salon of 1847 and launched his career. Critics like Théophile Gautier championed this work as the epitome of the Neo-Grec movement.

Where did Jean-Léon Gérôme travel during his first visit to Egypt?

In 1856, Jean-Léon Gérôme traveled up the Nile to Cairo and Abu Simbel before crossing the Sinai Peninsula to Jerusalem and Damascus. These journeys formed the basis of many Orientalist paintings that depicted Arab religious practice and North African landscapes.

How long did Jean-Léon Gérôme teach at the École des Beaux-Arts?

Jean-Léon Gérôme became one of three professors at the École des Beaux-Arts starting around 1864 and taught for over forty years. More than two thousand students received education through his atelier during this period.

When did Jean-Léon Gérôme die and where was he buried?

Jean-Léon Gérôme died on the 10th of January 1904 at age seventy-nine found dead in a small room next to his atelier. He was buried in Montmartre Cemetery before the statue La Douleur cast for his son Jean who had died in 1891.