Gustave L C Doré

Gustave Doré, born in Strasbourg, France on 6th January 1832, was a French printmaker, illustrator, painter, comics artist, caricaturist, and sculptor. He is renowned for a prolific artistic output of wood-engravings illustrating classic literature, including the 'Bible de Tours', Dante's 'Divine Comedy' and 'Don Quixote' by Cervantes. He achieved worldwide fame on the basis of his vast output and, even though he did not attain unanimous critical acclaim during his lifetime, he was one of the...See more

Gustave Doré, born in Strasbourg, France on 6th January 1832, was a French printmaker, illustrator, painter, comics artist, caricaturist, and sculptor. He is renowned for a prolific artistic output of wood-engravings illustrating classic literature, including the 'Bible de Tours', Dante's 'Divine Comedy' and 'Don Quixote' by Cervantes. He achieved worldwide fame on the basis of his vast output and, even though he did not attain unanimous critical acclaim during his lifetime, he was one of the most famous French artists of the 19th Century. 'Book of Jesus' (Volume I) includes the reproduction of 30 black-and-white engravings by Doré taken from his illustrated version of the Vulgate Bible, mostly from the New Testament portion. In fact, Doré's illustrations of the Bible were so welcomed that a major exhibition of his work was given in London in 1867 and the 'Doré Gallery' was opened on Bond Street shortly thereafter. Other works illustrated by him include Coleridge's 'Rime of the Ancient Mariner', Tennyson's 'Idylls of the King' and Milton's 'Paradise Lost'. After the death of his father, Doré carried on living with his mother till he died of a heart attack at the age of 51 on 23rd January 1883. At that time, he was working on a new illustrated version of Shakespeare's plays. Gustave Doré was an accomplished watercolor painter and sculptor. See less