Pastoral

The story of Daphnis and Chloe appears in many literary works, the most famous of which is the novel Daphnis and Chloe by the ancient Greek writer Longus. Over the course of his life, Collin produced numerous works based on this idyllic tale of an innocent young man and woman awakening to love amid the pastoral landscape of Lesbos, Greece. Collin studied under William Adolphe Bouguereau and Alexandre Cabanel at the École des Beaux-Arts, and established his reputation at the Salon. While he incorporated natural light in the manner of the Impressionists, his style was eclectic, remaining grounded in traditional realism and composition methods. This became the foundation of the elegant, graceful plein-air style embraced by his students, including Kuroda Seiki and Wada Eisaku. Collin was also renowned for decorative murals in public buildings. According to Wada, when he was studying with Collin, the artist was working on three decorative paintings for a concert hall, one of which bears a striking resemblance to this work, though the specific concert hall remains unidentified. (A.J.)