Henry Bacon (8 October 1839 – 13 March 1912) was an American painter, author, illustrator, and translator. Before his formal training as an artist, he served as a soldier and

war artist A war artist is an artist either commissioned by a government or publication, or self-motivated, to document first-hand experience of war in any form of illustrative or depictive record.Imperial War Museum (IWM)header phrase, "war shapes lives" ...

during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

, and was badly wounded in the

Second Battle of Bull Run The Second Battle of Bull Run or Battle of Second Manassas was fought August 28–30, 1862, in Prince William County, Virginia, as part of the American Civil War. It was the culmination of the Northern Virginia Campaign waged by Confederate ...

. He then studied in France, and became a member of the

Pont-Aven School Pont-Aven School (; ) encompasses works of art influenced by the Breton town of Pont-Aven and its surroundings. Originally the term applied to works created in the artists' colony at Pont-Aven, which started to emerge in the 1850s and lasted until ...

, painting genre subjects of French country life, many sold back in America. He first traveled to Egypt in 1897, and then developed an interest in

Orientalist painting In art history, literature, and cultural studies, Orientalism is the imitation or depiction of aspects of the Eastern world (or "Orient") by writers, designers, and artists from the Western world. Orientalist painting, particularly of the Middle ...

, soon spending his winters in the

Middle East The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq. The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...

, dying in Cairo.

Life and career

Henry A. Bacon was born in

Haverhill, Massachusetts Haverhill ( ) is a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. Haverhill is located north of Boston on the New Hampshire border and about from the Atlantic Ocean. The population was 67,787 at the 2020 United States census. Located o ...

in 1839."Henry Bacon Dies in Egypt." During the

, he enlisted in the Union Army on 16 July 1861 and acted as a field artist for ''

Frank Leslie's Weekly ''Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper'', later renamed ''Leslie's Weekly'', was an American illustrated literary and news magazine founded in 1855 and published until 1922. It was one of several magazines started by publisher and illustrator Fr ...

'' while he served as a soldier within the 13th Massachusetts Infantry. Badly wounded at Bull Run, he was discharged on 19 December 1862.13th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry Rooster 1861-1864. After the war, he studied art with

Walter Gay Walter Gay (January 22, 1856July 13, 1937) was an American painter noted both for his genre paintings of French peasants, paintings of opulent interior scenes and was a notable art collector. Early life Walter Gay was born on January 22, 1856, ...

, who suggested that he travel to Paris to undertake a formal art education. In 1864, he went to Paris, with his first wife Elizabeth Lord, to study figure painting. He was admitted to France's premiere 'National School of Fine Arts' and was one of

Alexandre Cabanel Alexandre Cabanel (; 28 September 1823 – 23 January 1889) was a French Painting, painter. He painted historical, classical and religious subjects in the Academic art, academic style. He was also well known as a portrait painter. He was Napoleon ...

's pupils. Bacon traveled to

Pont-Aven Pont-Aven (; in Breton) is a commune in the Finistère department in the Brittany region in Northwestern France. Demographics Inhabitants of Pont-Aven are called in French. Pont-Aven absorbed the former commune of Nizon in 1954, which had ...

, a commune/village in the

Finistère Finistère (, ; ) is a Departments of France, department of France in the extreme west of Brittany. Its prefecture is Quimper and its largest city is Brest, France, Brest. In 2019, it had a population of 915,090.département In the administrative divisions of France, the department (, ) is one of the three levels of government under the national level (" territorial collectivities"), between the administrative regions and the communes. There are a total of 101 ...

'', in

Brittany Brittany ( ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the north-west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica in Roman Gaul. It became an Kingdom of Brittany, independent kingdom and then a Duch ...

and fell in love with Pont-Aven. Back in Paris, he mentioned the place to his friends who were painters. He is credited to have been the first American painter and among the first painters from a long group of painters to come to Pont-Aven including

Paul Gauguin Eugène Henri Paul Gauguin (; ; 7 June 1848 – 8 May 1903) was a French painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramist, and writer, whose work has been primarily associated with the Post-Impressionist and Symbolist movements. He was also an influ ...

and advised and attracted fellow American, Robert Wylie to spend summers there (and Wylie is even buried in Pont-Aven). This period is known nowadays as the

. Bacon exhibited at the salon from 1868 through to 1896 with genre works which had found favour with the American market. He also worked as a journalist sending reports of events in Paris to the ''Boston Daily Evening Transcript.'' In 1897, he travelled to Egypt for the first time and began regularly spending winters there. At that time, he switched from oils to watercolours which he believed was the optimal medium to capture the transparent light of the Middle East.Ackerman. Bacon was the author of ''A Parisian Year'' (1882), which he also illustrated, and ''Parisian Art and Artists'' (1883). He contributed illustrations to ''Our Houseboat on the Nile'' (1901) by Lee Bacon. From 1890 to 1898, he translated from the French annual volumes about the

Paris Salon The Salon (), or rarely Paris Salon (French: ''Salon de Paris'' ), beginning in 1667 was the official art exhibition of the in Paris. Between 1748 and 1890 it was arguably the greatest annual or biennial art event in the Western world. At the ...

with illustrations by

Goupil & Cie Goupil & Cie is an international auction house and merchant of contemporary art and collectibles. Jean-Baptiste Adophe Goupil founded Goupil & Cie in 1850. Goupil & Cie became a leading art dealership in 19th-century France, with its headquart ...

. Bacon died of a heart attack in

Cairo, Egypt Cairo ( ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Egypt and the Cairo Governorate, being home to more than 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, L ...

, in 1912.

Gallery

Image:The Landing of the Pilgrims (1877) by Henry A. Bacon.jpg, ''The Landing of the Pilgrims'', 1877,

Pilgrim Hall Museum The Pilgrim Hall Museum at 75 Court Street in Plymouth, Massachusetts is the oldest public museum in the United States in continuous operation, having opened in 1824. History The Pilgrim Society, established in 1820, runs the museum. The museum ...

File:Brooklyn Museum - Égalité - Henry Bacon - overall.jpg, ''Égalité'', 1889,

Brooklyn Museum The Brooklyn Museum is an art museum in the New York City borough (New York City), borough of Brooklyn. At , the museum is New York City's second largest and contains an art collection with around 500,000 objects. Located near the Prospect Heig ...

File:Henry Bacon - Fisherfolk Returning with their Nets Etretat.jpg, ''Fisherfolk Returning with their Nets, Etretat'', c. 1890. File:Henry A. Bacon - 'Egyptian Pyramids', watercolor over graphite, 1897.jpg, ''Egyptian Pyramids'', watercolor over graphite, 1897,

Honolulu Museum of Art The Honolulu Museum of Art (formerly the Honolulu Academy of Arts) is an art museum in Honolulu, Hawaii, Hawaii. The museum is the largest of its kind in the state, and was founded in 1922 by Anna Rice Cooke. It has one of the largest single co ...

File:Henry A. Bacon - 'Obelisk--Karnak in 1900', watercolor over graphite by Henry A. Bacon, 1900.jpg, ''Obelisk-Karnak in 1900'', watercolor over graphite,

File:Henry Bacon - Spirit of the Sphinx - 1966.99.1 - Smithsonian American Art Museum.jpg, ''The Spirit of the Sphinx,'' c. 1900,

Smithsonian American Art Museum The Smithsonian American Art Museum (SAAM; formerly the National Museum of American Art) is a museum in Washington, D.C., part of the Smithsonian Institution. Together with its branch museum, the Renwick Gallery, SAAM holds one of the world's lar ...

File:Henry Bacon - General View of the Acropolis at Sunset - 1927.5.5 - Smithsonian American Art Museum.jpg, ''General View of the Acropolis at Sunset,'' n.d.

File:Henry Bacon - Theatre of Dionysus - 1927.5.7 - Smithsonian American Art Museum.jpg, ''Theatre of Dionysus,'' n.d., Smithsonian American Art Museum

Bibliography

A bibliography of books written by, illustrated by, or translated by Henry Bacon:

Author

* Bacon, Henry (1882)
''A Parisian Year''
illustrated by the author, Boston: Roberts Brothers, 1882. * Bacon, Henry (1883)
''Parisian Art and Artists''
Boston: J.R. Osgood and Company, 1883.

Illustrator

* Bacon, Lee (1901)
''Our Houseboat on the Nile''
with illustrations from water colors by Henry Bacon, Boston: Houghton, Mifflin and Company, 1901.

Translator (chronological)

* Dayot, Armand (1890)
''The Salon of 1890''
with text in English, translated by Henry Bacon, Boston: Estes & Lauriat, 1890. * Proust, Antonin (1891)
''The Salon of 1891''
with text in English, translated by Henry Bacon, Boston: Estes & Lauriat, 1891. * Larroumet, Gustave (1892)
''The Salon of 1892''
with text in English, translated by Henry Bacon. New York: Boussad, Valadon & Co., 1892. * Jollivet, Gaston (1893)
''Goupil's Paris Salon 1893''
with text in English, translated by Henry Bacon. New York: Boussad, Valadon & Co., 1893. * Milès, Roger (1894)
''Goupil's Paris Salon of 1894''
with text in English, translated by Henry Bacon, New York: Boussad, Valadon & Co., 1894. * Bénédite, Léonce (1895)
''Goupil's Paris Salon of 1895''
with text in English, translated by Henry Bacon, New York: Boussod, Valadon & Co., 1895. * Thiébault-Sisson (1896)
''Goupil's Paris Salon of 1896''
with text in English, translated by Henry Bacon, New York: Jean Boussad, Mansi, Jouant & Co., 1896. * Schefer, Gaston (1897)
''Goupil's Paris Salon of 1897''
with text in English, translated by Henry Bacon, New York: Jean Boussad, Mansi, Jouant & Co., 1897. * Proust, Antonin (1898)
''Goupil's Paris Salon of 1898''
with text in English, translated by Henry Bacon, New York: Jean Boussad, Mansi, Jouant & Co., 1898.

References

Sources

* * *

External links

*
A finding aid to the Henry Bacon papers, 1849-1931 in the Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution

Henry Bacon at American Art Gallery
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bacon, Henry 1839 births 1912 deaths 19th-century American painters 20th-century American painters American male painters American alumni of the École des Beaux-Arts American Orientalist painters Pont-Aven painters 19th-century American male artists 20th-century American male artists