Born in La Rochelle, France in 1825, William Bouguereau showed artistic talent from a young age. He studied at the École des Beaux-Arts in Bordeaux before moving to Paris in 1846 to attend the esteemed École des Beaux-Arts there. Bouguereau quickly gained recognition for his paintings, winning the prestigious Prix de Rome in 1850, which allowed him to study in Italy for 3 years. 

In Italy, Bouguereau was deeply influenced by Renaissance masters like Raphael and developed his signature style - graceful, life-like figures rendered with immaculate technique and a high degree of finish. He believed art should showcase the ideal of human beauty. 

Rise to Fame and Academic Success

Upon returning to France, William Bouguereau began a prolific career creating paintings for exhibitions, private patrons, churches, and public buildings. His mythological like "The Birth of Venus" (1879) and "Nymphs and Satyr" (1873) were met with great acclaim and cemented his reputation as a master of the human figure.

Bouguereau also gained fame for his religious paintings like "Pietà" (1876) and genre scenes of peasant life such as "The Nut Gatherers" (1882). These sentimental yet masterfully painted exemplified the height of academic art. Bouguereau received many honors during his lifetime, including election to the Académie des Beaux-Arts in 1876 and serving as president of the Société des Artistes Français.

Legacy and Influence

Although his traditional style fell out of favor when modernist art rose to prominence in the early 20th century, William Bouguereau's paintings have seen a resurgence of interest and appreciation in recent decades. Today, he is recognized as one of the greatest academic painters with in major museums worldwide.

Bouguereau's incredible technical mastery, graceful compositions, and idealized beauty have influenced countless artists. His iconic mythological and sentimental genre scenes are admired for their virtuosic execution and adherence to classical aesthetics. As a key figure in the academic art tradition, William Bouguereau's legacy continues to inspire realist painters to this day.