William-Adolphe Bouguereau - Dawn (aka The girl with a lily)

• Title: Dawn (aka The girl with a lily)
• Artist: William-Adolphe Bouguereau (1825-1905)
• Date: 1881
• Medium: Oil on canvas
• Dimensions: 215 x 107 cm

Aurora, also known as Dawn, stood as one of Bouguereau’s most celebrated works. Serving as the inaugural piece in a series portraying the four Times of Day, it was succeeded by Dusk in 1882, Night in 1883, and Day in 1884. The allegorical representation of these temporal phases traces its origins back to at least the Renaissance era. Bouguereau's Times of Day series offers a study in contrasts and complements; collectively, they unveil harmonies of line, form, and color, serving as exemplars of his standards of ideal beauty and feminine grace during the 1880s. As an academic artist, Bouguereau underscored the importance of rigorous training in form and technique to his numerous students.