William Adolphe Bouguereau - Return of Spring [1886]

William Adolphe Bouguereau - Return of Spring [1886], a photo by Gandalf's Gallery on Flickr.

In Return of Spring, all the qualities that won Bouguereau acclaim are fully apparent. Plainly referring to Raphael’s famous Galatea, the waking nymph is clearly drawn and modelled to a porcelain-like finish. The three trios of cupids that whirl around her in a garland of flying flesh are exercises in anatomical virtuosity, showing essentially the same figure in a variety of poses. Bouguereau pronounced himself “really thrilled with this . . . painting; the attitude and expression of the young woman are, I think, exactly right.” Not everyone shared this view, and some critics accused the painter of “academic formalism, empty of blood and emotion” when the painting was first exhibited in 1886. It has aroused stronger emotions than that on two separate occasions in Omaha. In 1890 and again in 1976 it was attacked by individuals who clearly found the nudity altogether too realistic.

[Oil on canvas, 201.3 x 117.8 cm]