Frédéric Montenard

His art studies began at the École des Beaux-arts, where his teacher was Pierre Puvis de Chavannes.

[2] He made his début at the Salon in 1872 with landscapes and seascapes; participating in their exhibitions on a regular basis for many years.

Six years later, he produced two large paintings for Le Train Bleu, a famous restaurant filled with the work of notable painters, near the Gare de Lyon in Paris.

After World War I, he became a permanent resident at the château "Croix de Bontar", which had been built by his father, in Besse-sur-Issole, with a first floor museum devoted to the history of Brignoles.

In 1921, he was named an official Peintre de la Marine[4] and, the following year, he provided 34 illustrations for a new edition of Mireille by Frédéric Mistral, an author he greatly admired.