Press Release

The Spectacular Art of Jean-Léon Gérôme 
June 15-September 12, 2010
Jean-Léon Gérôme (French, 1824-1904) ranks among the most successful artists of the nineteenth century. Ranging from the ancient Roman arenas of gladiatorial combat to the streets of modern Egypt, his spectacular, meticulously rendered pictures captured the public’s imagination and made him one of France’s most honored painters. Restless and experimental, he also helped pioneer the artistic use of photography and made bold forays into polychrome and mixed-media sculpture. Critically controversial in his day, Gérôme was neglected for much of the twentieth century due to the triumph of Impressionism and Modernism. Organized by the J. Paul Getty Museum and the Musée d’Orsay, Paris, in association with the Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza, Madrid, this is the first comprehensive show devoted to the artist in decades.