L'homme et la femme (Adam et Eve)
1895
Medium
lithograph in black on japan paper
Classification
Department
CG-E
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Virginia and Ira Jackson Collection, gift in memory of Virginia H. Jackson
Accession Number
1996.151.170
Art Historical Context
In the National Gallery of Art's Virginia and Ira Jackson Collection,L'homme et la femme (Adam Eve)* (1895) by Arist Maillol captures a timeless biblical narrative through the intimate lens of late 19th-century French art. Maillol, a pioneering renowned for his voluptuous female, began his career as a painter and printmaker, blending Symbolist influences with a focus on the human body. This black lithograph on delicate Japan paper—prized for its absorbency and texture—depicts Adam and Eve in a moment of primal connection, emphasizing line, contour, and sensuality over narrative detail. Create...
About the Artist
Aristide Maillol
Aristide Maillol (1861–1944) was a French sculptor, painter, and printmaker born in the coastal village of Banyuls-sur-Mer in Roussillon. From a young age, he aspired to be an artist, moving to Paris in 1881 despite living in poverty. He studied at the École des Arts Décoratifs in 1883 and was accepted into the prestigious École des Beaux-Arts in 1885, where he trained under the academic masters J...