Biographies

Alexandre-Gabriel Decamps (1803 – 1860) He was born in Paris. Although he studied briefly with Bouhot and then de Pujol, he was largely self-taught. He made only one visit to the Middle East, in 1828 (visiting Turkey, Greece and North Africa), but in the 1830s he established a considerable reputation as a painter of Orientalist and Biblical themes. He was passionately fond of animals, especially dogs, and indulged in all kinds of field sports. He died on the 22nd of August 1860 in. consequence of being thrown from a vicious horse while hunting at Fontainebleau. The style of Decamps was marked by vivid dramatic conception, by original and startling use of contrasts of color and of light and shade.