The Wave 1896 (La Vague) By William-Adolphe Bouguereau

William Adolphe Bouguereau painted The Wave, also known as La Vague, in 1896.  It is one of his most recognizable and controversial nude paintings.

Why did Bouguereau paint The Wave?

Adolphe William Bouguereau painted The Wave to explore the power and beauty of nature, particularly the ocean.
Today, La Vague is one of the most famous nude art paintings in Western art tradition. Fascinated by the female form, Bouguereau frequently depicted Venus and bathing women. Earlier Bouguereau paintings in the same vein include After the Bath 1875, Biblis 1884, and The Bathers 1884.

The real woman in The Wave is Odile Charpentier. Odile modeled for Bouguereau on several occasions, also serving as his creative muse and confidante.

Among William-Adolphe Bouguereau's paintings, The Wave celebrates stunning accuracy and realism. As a master colorist and draftsman, the artist took great pride in his ability to faithfully recreate the natural world. He often spent hours sketching seemingly tiny and insignificant details, such as a hand or ankle, before meticulously building up to the final piece. Reflecting on this careful working method, Bouguereau undertook a small graphite study and a preparatory oil study before completing La Vague.

While Bouguereau's famous painting depicts the woman’s body in incredible detail, his painting also pays equal attention to the waves and the sea. One can almost feel the ocean’s spray and foam, with the moody horizon visible in the distance.

What Type of artist was William Adolphe Bouguereau?

Bouguereau was a leading painter of the French Academic school. With influences including Neo-classicism and Realism, his art often depicts mythological subjects with precise attention to detail.

In 1881, Bouguereau became president of the Société des Artistes Français. This position provided significant influence over the Paris Salon, and he consequently wielded substantial power over the French art world as a whole.

La Vague was Bouguereau’s submission to the 1896 Paris Salon. It represented the classical approach and subject matter frequently seen in other William Bouguereau paintings. Indeed, classical images such as Botticelli’s Birth of Venus and Greco-Roman sculpture significantly influenced.

While there may be parallels with famous Wave depictions such as the Japanese artist Hokusai’s The Great Wave, the western academic tradition was Bouguereau’s primary influence. Gustave Courbet’s 1869 depictions of The Wave may have also influenced Bouguereau. Whether Bouguereau saw the Courbet artworks remains unknown, however.

Stylistically, Bouguereau despised the new avant-garde movements revolutionizing French art at the time. He particularly disliked the Impressionist paintings championed by Claude Monet.

Despite this opposition to new approaches, La Vague departed considerably from traditional representations of Venus. Stripped back to its most basic narrative elements of Venus and the sea, the lone woman is the sole focus of the composition. Seated gracefully on the sand, she almost floats above the encroaching tide. Her gaze directly engages the viewer, producing an incredible feeling of immediacy.

How much is Bouguereau's Venus Painting Worth?

As a classic Bouguereau nude art, The Wave sold for over $700,000 in 1999. Auctioned by Christie's, the painting massively exceeded its guide price of $ 250,000-$ 350,000.
The following year, Christie's auctioned another artwork, La Charité, painted in 1878, for a cool $3.53 million.

William Adolphe Bouguereau's paintings haven’t always performed this well, however. The artist has drifted in and out of fashion over the years. In 2019, La Jeunesse de Bacchus went up for auction at Sotheby’s. Despite the staggering guide price of $35 million, the painting failed to sell.

Where to Buy Bouguereau Art Reproductions?

Discover 100% hand-painted oil on canvas art in our vast online catalog of replica paintings for sale.
Fine art reproductions of William Adolphe Bouguereau's paintings are affordable and accessible.