Félix Ziem

1821 – 1911

Félix-François-Georges-Philibert Ziem, French painter. Born in 1821 in Beaune to a Croatian father and French mother, he initially studied architecture at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Dijon until he was expelled in 1838 for unruly behaviour. In 1839 he left for Marseille, where he was Clerk of Works on the construction of the Marseille canal. In November 1839 he was noticed by Ferdinand Philippe, Duc d'Orléans, who accepted two watercolours that Ziem presented to him and commissioned a further six. This first success decided Ziem's vocation, and he started a drawing class that was attended by Louis Auguste Laurent Aiguier (1819-1865) and Adolphe Monticelli. During this period he also encountered the Provençal artists Emile Loubon (1809-1863), Prosper Grésy (1804-1874) and Gustave Ricard (1823-1873). As an artist, Ziem became an avid traveler in search of beautiful subjects, favouring areas with unique atmospheric qualities. He owned homes in Venice, the Martigues, Nice and Paris. In 1844 he traveled to Greece, Turkey and Russia, and would later travel through Belgium, Holland, England, Egypt, Hungary and Algeria. Throughout his career, Ziem was also an active exhibitor in the Paris Salons, beginning in 1849.

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