Louis-Joseph-Raphaël Collin (; 17 June 1850 – 21 October 1916) was a French painter born and raised in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, where he became a prominent academic painter and a teacher. He is principally known for the links he created between French and Japanese art, in both painting and

ceramics A ceramic is any of the various hard, brittle, heat-resistant, and corrosion-resistant materials made by shaping and then firing an inorganic, nonmetallic material, such as clay, at a high temperature. Common examples are earthenware, porce ...

Early life

Collin studied at the school of Saint-Louis, then went to

Verdun Verdun ( , ; ; ; official name before 1970: Verdun-sur-Meuse) is a city in the Meuse (department), Meuse departments of France, department in Grand Est, northeastern France. It is an arrondissement of the department. In 843, the Treaty of V ...

where he was at school with

Jules Bastien-Lepage Jules Bastien-Lepage (1 November 1848 – 10 December 1884) was a French painter closely associated with the beginning of naturalism, an artistic style that grew out of the Realist movement and paved the way for the development of impressioni ...

; they became close friends. Collin then went to Paris and studied in the atelier of Bouguereau and then joined Lepage at

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 atelier where they both worked alongside

Fernand Cormon Fernand Cormon (; 24 December 1845 – 20 March 1924) was a French painter born in Paris. He became a pupil of Alexandre Cabanel, Eugène Fromentin, and Jean-François Portaels, and one of the leading historical painters of modern France. Biog ...

, Aimé Morot and

Benjamin Constant Henri-Benjamin Constant de Rebecque (25 October 1767 – 8 December 1830), or simply Benjamin Constant, was a Swiss and French political thinker, activist and writer on political theory and religion. A committed republican from 1795, Constant ...

. Collin painted still-lives, nudes, portraits and genre pieces, and preferred to render his subjects

en plein air ''En plein air'' (; French language, French for 'outdoors'), or plein-air painting, is the act of painting outdoors. This method contrasts with studio painting or academic rules that might create a predetermined look. The theory of 'En plein ai ...

with a clear and luminous palette.

Career

Around 1873 he began successfully exhibiting at the Salon. He won a number of prizes that helped launch his career, and before long he was receiving increasingly prestigious commissions to paint large scale murals in major public buildings around Paris, including some of the most prominent cultural centers of Paris: the Hôtel de Ville, the Théatre de l'éon, and the

Opéra-Comique The Opéra-Comique () is a Paris opera company which was founded around 1714 by some of the popular Théâtre de la foire, theatres of the Parisian fairs. In 1762 the company was merged with – and for a time took the name of – its chief riva ...

. He provided designs for decorative plates made by

Théodore Deck Joseph-Théodore Deck (2 January 1823 – 15 May 1891) was a 19th-century French Pottery, potter, an important figure in late 19th-century art pottery. Born in Guebwiller, Haut-Rhin, he began learning the trade in his early 20s, moving to Paris at ...

. Collin's early work closely followed the essential tenets of French academism. Like the Renaissance painters they admired, the nineteenth-century academicians used historical, religious, or allegorical painting to communicate an idea. Within the parameters of this literary art, Collin made subtle modifications to the accepted academic style, introducing elements of the impressionist technique into his allegorical scenes. Such formal techniques as formal composition and bright color evoked the light filled landscapes of impressionism rather than the dark chiaroscuro of Renaissance painting. During the last few decades of the nineteenth century, academic painting in France was in crisis, eclipsed by the new artistic movements of impressionism and symbolism. Collin's friendship with members of the impressionists provided him with insights into the new direction contemporary painting was taking. He adapted his work accordingly and in such paintings as ''Young Woman'', he found a compromise between the academic style and the new painterly innovations of the impressionists and the Nabis. Collin began to emphasize the picture surface by reducing the spatial depth of his paintings as well as composing with areas of concentrated color. Yet he never completely abandoned the hallmarks of academicism: allegory and naturalism. Daphnis-chloe-cover

Collin figured prominently in artistic exchanges between Paris and

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

during the late nineteenth century as

Kuroda Seiki Viscount was a Japanese painter and teacher, noted for bringing Western art theory and practice to a wide Japanese audience. He was among the leaders of the ''yōga'' (or Western-style) movement in late 19th and early 20th-century Japanese pai ...

, Kume Keiichirō, and Okada Saburōsuke, among others, studied in his studio and at the Académie Colarossi, where Collin was associated. Kuroda and Kume, who subsequently assumed professorships at the Tokyo Fine Arts School (Tokyo Bijutsu Gakkō), were especially instrumental in introducing to Japan Collin's academic teaching methods as well as the lighter palette, brushwork, and

plein air ''En plein air'' (; French for 'outdoors'), or plein-air painting, is the act of painting outdoors. This method contrasts with studio painting or academic rules that might create a predetermined look. The theory of 'En plein air' painting is c ...

approach he espoused. This mentorship of the first generation of Japanese oil painters contributed to the special respect he continues to enjoy in Japan. Collin also illustrated many books, notably ''Daphnis and Chloé'' (1890) and '' Chansons de Bilitis'' (1906).

Honours

* 1889 Grand Prix, Exposition Universelle * 1894 Officier of the

Légion d'honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

* Chevalier of the order of St Michael of Bavaria *

Order of the Rising Sun The is a Japanese honors system, Japanese order, established in 1875 by Emperor Meiji. The Order was the first national decoration awarded by the Japanese government, created on 10 April 1875 by decree of the Council of State. The badge feat ...

of Japan

Gallery

File:CollinsDeckPlate.jpg,

plate,
decorated by Collin,
Musée du Petit Palais, Paris File:Plate, Joseph Theodore Deck - Indianapolis Museum of Art - DSC00669.JPG, Théodore Deck plate,
decorated by Collin,
Indianapolis Museum of Art File:Raphaël Collin Le départ.png, Departure, lithographic print from L'Estampe Moderne File:Raphael Collin - La Chanson Legere.jpg, The Light Song, decoration for the comic opera

Principal works

* ''Idylle'', 1875 * ''Daphnis & Chloé'', 1877 (exhibited at the Musée des Beaux-Arts et de la Dentelle, Alençon) * ''Portrait of the artist’s father'', 1887 * ''Portrait of M S Hayem'', 1879 * ''Portrait of Mlle C'', 1880 * ''La Musique'', 1880 * ''Petits portraits en plein air'', 1881 * ''Idylle'', 1882 * ''Été'', 1884 * ''Floréal'', 1886 * ''Fin d’été & Jeunesse Sorbonne'', 1889 * ''Plafond pour l’Odéon'', 1891 * ''Au bord de la mer'', 1892

References

* Edition: Guth, Christine M.E., Volk, Alicia, Yamanashi, Emiko, ''Japan & Paris: Impressionism, Postimpressionism, and the Moderne Era'', Honolulu Academy of Arts, 15 September 2004;
Obituary

External links

* * Jennifer A. Thompson, �
''Morning'' by Louis-Joseph-Raphaël Collin (inv. 2956)
” in
The John G. Johnson Collection: A History and Selected Works
', a Philadelphia Museum of Art free digital publication {{DEFAULTSORT:Collin, Raphael 1850 births 1916 deaths French muralists École des Beaux-Arts alumni French ceramists 19th-century French painters French male painters French Symbolist painters French portrait painters 19th-century French illustrators 20th-century French illustrators 20th-century French painters 20th-century French male artists Officers of the Legion of Honour Painters from Paris Recipients of the Order of the Rising Sun 19th-century French male artists