François-Auguste Biard

Although his parents intended for him to join the clergy, he spent most of his time learning to paint, beginning at a wallpaper factory in Lyon.

[1] Eventually, he was able to attend the École des Beaux-Arts, where he worked with Pierre Révoil until 1818, then studied with Fleury François Richard, after he took over as Director.

[3] He was joined by his fiancée, the writer Léonie d’Aunet, who published an account of the trip in 1854, entitled Voyage d’une femme au Spitzberg.

Using Rio de Janeiro as a base, he made several excursions into the countryside and to the Amazon, where he was one of the first painters to depict the indigenous people.

He was offered a teaching position at the Imperial Academy of Fine Arts, but declined in favor of continuing his travels.