Jules Dalou

I like Dalou (1838-1902) for a couple of reasons. Not least of which was that he was technically superb, but also because of his politics. Though he worked on commissions for incredibly wealthy clients, he sided with the working-class politically and actually got himself into a lot of trouble by being a little too close to the Paris Commune. He was made to flee to England, and was given a life sentence (later repealed) in absentia.

Jules Dalou studied under Carpeaux (creator of the incredible sculpture Ugolino and his Sons), and created a number of fantastic public works including this rather raunchy depiction of bacchanalia.

I love the illusion of space that he created in a relatively shallow field, especially in the foreground, and the kneeling figure on the left. Look how his leg appears to recede. This work follows on from a post I made regarding a trompe l'oeil masterpiece by Gerard de Lairesse, and another on the work of Christen Kobke, who created a couple of masterful illusions of depth in grisaille.