Jeunes Femmes Au Bain (Young Women Bathing) c1879
“Jeunes Femmes Au Bain” (Young Women Bathing), created in 1879 by the renowned French artist Henri-Pierre Picou (1824 – 1895), is an exceptional portrayal of female figures set in a historical, classical setting. The artwork depicts an intimate moment of women bathing, captured with an impeccable balance of realism, sensuality, and historical significance. Picou’s mastery of oil paint and his keen ability to blend the sensual with the intellectual shine through in this piece, offering viewers a glimpse into the world of the 19th century French academic tradition and a delicate, yet bold representation of the female form.
Table of Contents
The Main Subject
The central subject of the artwork is a group of young women, who are captured in various stages of undress while they engage in a communal bath. The central figure is a youthful woman, her body relaxed and gracefully poised as she dips her hand into the water. She is surrounded by others, each in different postures and moments of engagement with the scene, all framed within the soft natural light streaming into the room. These women are elegantly positioned around a large, classical bathtub, and their nudity, though revealed in its full beauty, is not overtly sexualized but rather portrayed as part of the everyday ritual of bathing, a common practice in many ancient civilizations.
The artist’s careful attention to the body language and the naturalistic depiction of the women imbues the painting with an air of tranquility and quiet intimacy. The women are shown in a setting that could have belonged to ancient Rome or Greece, highlighting their beauty and grace, while evoking the classical ideals of feminine beauty and harmony. Picou’s portrayal of the human form is executed with precise detail—each curve of the women’s bodies is carefully modeled with soft, almost sculptural shadows, conveying a sense of life and movement.
Objects and Materials
The setting of “Jeunes Femmes Au Bain” is adorned with an array of objects that speak to the luxury and opulence of the period, reflecting the artist’s deep respect for classical traditions. The large, marble bathtub at the heart of the scene serves as both a literal and metaphorical vessel, symbolizing purity and rejuvenation.
Surrounding the women are several elements that echo the themes of luxury and indulgence: a small ceramic pitcher being poured into the tub, an intricately woven towel draped over one woman’s shoulders, a bowl of fruit on a nearby table, and even a small chest with objects scattered about its top. These items, while simple in their own right, add texture and depth to the scene, giving it a sense of richness and grounding the work in its classical roots.
The room itself is designed with architectural elements reminiscent of classical antiquity, with columns and finely painted walls adorned with intricate patterns and motifs. Picou has carefully chosen his palette to enhance the richness of the space, using warm earth tones for the walls, soft blues for the drapery, and the bright ivory of the marble tub and the women’s skin tones. Each object in the painting is rendered with fine detail, from the gleam of water in the tub to the folds in the clothing of the women, showcasing the artist’s technical prowess.
The Terrain and Environment
The painting takes place indoors, within an opulent room that feels luxurious and private. The architectural space depicted in the artwork suggests a classical bathing chamber, possibly drawing inspiration from the Roman baths or similar structures from antiquity. The room is filled with intricate details: lush, textured drapery hanging from tall windows, and decorative elements that emphasize the opulence of the space. The luxuriousness of the setting is contrasted by the simplicity and natural beauty of the women, creating a harmonious tension between artifice and nature.
The light in the painting plays a key role in enhancing the atmosphere. Soft, diffused daylight enters from an unseen source, perhaps from an open window or a skylight, casting gentle shadows and highlights across the bodies of the figures. The light, combined with the delicate rendering of textures such as the wet marble and soft fabrics, creates an intimate and serene mood, reinforcing the idea of a secluded, private world for these women.
Style and Theme
Henri-Pierre Picou was a prominent painter of the French academic tradition, and his work in “Jeunes Femmes Au Bain” exemplifies the ideals of classical art and beauty. This work, painted in the late 19th century, demonstrates the artist’s adherence to the formal traditions of history painting, where themes of mythology, the human body, and the portrayal of women were often explored in great depth. The theme of bathers was not uncommon during this time, as artists often sought to depict the female form in classical settings, paying homage to the sensuality and purity that the ancients celebrated.
Picou’s attention to anatomical precision and his ability to convey the soft texture of skin, fabric, and water suggest a deep understanding of both classical art and contemporary academic methods. His style is rooted in realism, but with an idealized rendering that elevates the figures to a more divine or ethereal level. The soft brushwork, combined with the realistic depiction of the figures, contributes to a mood of timelessness, where the figures could exist in any historical period or mythical context.
Mood and Atmosphere
The overall mood of “Jeunes Femmes Au Bain” is one of quiet elegance and tranquil beauty. The scene does not evoke any sense of urgency or turmoil, but rather presents a moment frozen in time—a gentle, intimate ritual among women. The soft, flowing fabrics, the natural light, and the serene facial expressions of the women all contribute to the peaceful atmosphere. The presence of the figures, who seem lost in the act of bathing and interacting with one another, creates a feeling of harmony, both among the women and within the space they inhabit.
Though the painting portrays nudity, it does so in a way that is entirely tasteful, emphasizing the purity and innocence of the women rather than any explicit sensuality. This mood reflects the academic ideals of the time, where nudity was often seen as a symbol of beauty, innocence, or divine grace rather than mere sexuality.
Jeunes Femmes Au Bain is a retouched digital art old masters reproduction of a public domain image that is available for purchase as a wall decor art print.
This digital art creation, as with all the artwork that can be found on the Xzendor7 website is available for purchase online in a variety of material formats including canvas prints, acrylic prints, metal prints, wood prints, framed prints, posters, and as rolled canvas prints in a variety of sizes from 12 inches to 72 inches depending on the size of the actual artwork and the print on demand shop you choose to buy the art from.
The artwork is also available on a broad range of men’s and women’s apparel, mugs, totes, scarfs, notebooks and journals and many home decor products.
Artist Bio
Info Below Derived From Wikipedia.org
Henri-Pierre was an academic painter and one of the founders of the Neo-Grec school, along with his close friends Gustave Boulanger, Jean-Léon Gérôme, and Jean-Louis Hamon, also academic painters.
All of the men studied in the workshops of both Paul Delaroche and later Charles Gleyre. Picou’s style was noticeably influenced by Gleyre; while the rest of the group generally painted classical and mythological subjects.
Picou first debuted is artistic style at the Salon in 1847; and the following year was awarded a second-class medal for his painting, Cléopâtre et Antoine sur le Cydnus. Also known as Cleopatra on the Cydnus, it is commonly regarded as Picou’s masterpiece.
The showing at the Salon in 1848 of Cléopâtre et Antoine sur le Cydnus was written about by the critic Théophile Gautier, who felt that the subject matter was too ambitious, but also said that “As it is, it gives the best hope for the future of the young artist, and ranks among the seven or eight most important paintings of the Salon.”
In 1875, the painting was exhibited in New York, and afterward found a place on the walls of a private art gallery in San Francisco.
Picou maintained a large workshop in Paris on the Boulevard de Magenta, which provided him room to work on his expansive frescoes. His popularity continued to rise and he went on to win the Second Prix de Rome in 1853 for his painting, Jésus chassant les vendeurs du Temple (The Moneylenders Chased from the Temple), and another second-class medal for his Salon painting in 1857.
From the time of his debut in 1847, he became a regular at the Salon, showing almost every year until his final exhibit in 1893. He has been called the most fashionable painter towards the close of the Second French Empire; and received many commissions, including commissions for large religious frescoes from many churches, which included the Église Saint-Roch.
