01 Work, Interpretations of Olympian deities, William-Adolphe Bouguereau's Bacchant, with footnotes #37

William-Adolphe Bouguereau  (1825–1905)

Detail; Bacchante lutinant une chèvre/  Bacchant, c. 1862

Oil on canvas

height: 115 cm (45.2 in); width: 185 cm (72.8 in)

Musée des Beaux-Arts de Bordeaux

William-Adolphe Bouguereau  (1825–1905)

Bacchante lutinant une chèvre/  Bacchant, c. 1862

Oil on canvas

height: 115 cm (45.2 in); width: 185 cm (72.8 in)

Musée des Beaux-Arts de Bordeaux

In Greek mythology, maenads were the female followers of Dionysus and the most significant members of the Thiasus, the god's retinue. Their name literally translates as "raving ones." Maenads were known as Bassarids, Bacchae or Bacchantes in Roman mythology, after the penchant of the equivalent Roman god, Bacchus, to wear a bassaris or fox-skin.

Often the maenads were portrayed as inspired by Dionysus into a state of ecstatic frenzy through a combination of dancing and intoxication. During these rites, the maenads would dress in fawn skins and carry a thyrsus, a long stick wrapped in ivy or vine leaves and tipped with a pine cone. They would weave ivy-wreaths around their heads or wear a bull helmet in honor of their god, and often handle or wear snakes. More Bacchante

William-Adolphe Bouguereau (November 30, 1825 – August 19, 1905) was a French academic painter and traditionalist. In his realistic genre paintings he used mythological themes, making modern interpretations of classical subjects, with an emphasis on the female human body. During his life he enjoyed significant popularity in France and the United States, was given numerous official honors, and received top prices for his work. As the quintessential salon painter of his generation, he was reviled by the Impressionist avant-garde. By the early twentieth century, Bouguereau and his art fell out of favor with the public, due in part to changing tastes. In the 1980s, a revival of interest in figure painting led to a rediscovery of Bouguereau and his work. Throughout the course of his life, Bouguereau executed 822 known finished paintings, although the whereabouts of many are still unknown. More William-Adolphe Bouguereau

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