Émile Bin

[2] Later, he would refuse to paint a portrait of Napoleon III for the Town Hall of Montmartre, despite needing the money to support his family.

[1] He initially worked as a decorative painter, specializing in hotels throughout Paris and Reims (including the great hall of the Hôtel du Louvre, which he did together with his uncle), but also worked at the National Museum of Natural History, the École Supérieure de Pharmacie, the Crédit Mobilier, the Church of Saint-Sulpice and some private residences such as the Louis XV Salon of André Adolphe Eugène Disdéri.

[1] At the International Exposition (1867), he collaborated on decorating the Egyptian Pavilion, designed by Jacques Drevet,[3] for which he was awarded the Order of the Medjidie.

[1] He was a fervent admirer of the works of Michelangelo and Raphael, and visited Rome in 1866, accompanied by his star pupil and sometime collaborator, Joseph Blanc,[2] reinforcing his interest in historical and anecdotal scenes and his predilection for mythological nudes.

Bin himself believed that it was all due to political manipulation by the socialist, Jules Joffrin, who was running against Boulanger in the Legislative Elections[6] That same year, to mark the centenary of the French Revolution, he executed a twenty-canvas historical diorama in the Parc des Buttes Chaumont, covering events from the Storming of the Bastille to the departure of Léon Gambetta during the Siege.