Alfred Boisseau (1823–1901) was an American/Canadian artist who was born in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. He was known as a painter and photographer, who specialized in paintings of North American Natives and the West. As a young man in his 20s, Boisseau immigrated to the United States, settling first in New Orleans, where his brother was working for the French consul. Except for a brief visit to Paris, he lived and worked in North America for the rest of his life. From 1848 Boisseau lived and worked in New York City and later in Cleveland. In 1860 he moved to

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

and later to

Manitoba Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population o ...

, Canada in the western part of the country.

Biography

Alfred Boisseau was born in Paris, France. He had an older brother who later served in government and the diplomatic corps. Becoming interested in art, Boisseau studied under

Paul Delaroche Hippolyte-Paul Delaroche (17 July 1797 – 4 November 1856) was a French painter who achieved his greater successes painting historical scenes. He became famous in Europe for his melodramatic depictions that often portrayed subjects from English ...

, a fashionable Paris artist whose style combined neo-classicism and romanticism. In his early 20s, Boisseau moved to

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster. ; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...

, living there from 1845 to 1847, while his brother served as secretary to the French consul. Boisseau painted his first works on Native American themes - mostly of members of the

Choctaw The Choctaw (in the Choctaw language, Chahta) are a Native American people originally based in the Southeastern Woodlands, in what is now Alabama and Mississippi. Their Choctaw language is a Western Muskogean language. Today, Choctaw people are ...

nation who were historically based in Louisiana and Mississippi. He returned to Paris, where his painting ''Louisiana Indians Walking Along a Bayou'' (1847), now in the permanent collection of the

New Orleans Museum of Art The New Orleans Museum of Art (or NOMA) is the oldest fine arts museum in the city of New Orleans. It is situated within City Park, a short distance from the intersection of Carrollton Avenue and Esplanade Avenue, and near the terminus of the ...

, was exhibited at the

Paris Salon The Salon (french: Salon), or rarely Paris Salon (French: ''Salon de Paris'' ), beginning in 1667 was the official art exhibition of the Académie des Beaux-Arts in Paris. Between 1748 and 1890 it was arguably the greatest annual or biennial art ...

of 1848. After that Boisseau sailed back to the United States, settling in New York City. There he taught art from 1849 to 1852. By 1852 Boisseau was working as a daguerreotypist in

Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

. He also advertised as a portrait and landscape painter, art teacher and art dealer. In 1860 he moved to Canada, where he opened a succession of three photographic studios in

. While working as secretary and bibliographer to the

Institut canadien de Montréal The Institut canadien de Montréal (English; Canadian Institute of Montreal) was founded on 17 December 1844, by a group of 200 young liberal professionals in Montreal, Canada East, Province of Canada. The Institute provided a public library and d ...

, he completed several paintings.Boisseau, A. (1870). ''Catalogue des livres de la bibliothèque de l'Institut-canadien, Montréal'': Alphonse Doutre, 47 p. Near the end of his life, he moved to western Canada, where he opened a studio in

Brandon, Manitoba Brandon () is the second-largest city in the province of Manitoba, Canada. It is located in the southwestern corner of the province on the banks of the Assiniboine River, approximately west of the provincial capital, Winnipeg, and east of the ...

. There he produced paintings of Plains Indian natives. He returned to the United States and died in

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from South ...

in 1901 where he is interred.

Images

File:Louisiana Indians Walking Along a Bayou.jpg, ''Louisiana Indians Walking Along a Bayou'' (1847), Alfred Boisseau File:Montreal-street-scene Alfred Boisseau.jpg, ''Montreal Street Scene'' (1890), Boisseau

References

External links

Biography of Boisseau

New Orleans Museum of Art: Boisseau in collection 1823 births 1901 deaths 19th-century Canadian painters Canadian male painters 19th-century Canadian male artists Members of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts {{Canada-painter-stub