Pierre Louis Rodolphe Julian (13 June 1839 – 2 February 1907) born in Lapalud southeastern France was a French painter, etcher and professor, founder and director of the Académie Julian in Paris.

[1] The writer André Corthis (1882–1952), winner of the 1906 edition of the Prix Femina was his niece.

Julian went to Paris, where he became a student of Léon Cogniet and Alexandre Cabanel, professor at the École des Beaux-Arts, without being enrolled there.

The challenges that he faced when in Paris led him to found in 1868, a private art academy, the Académie Julian, who also offered training to foreign artists and women who had little access to the official academy .

[4] Julian was described by the Anglo-Irish novelist and critic George Moore as "a kind of Hercules, dark-haired, strong, with broad shoulders, short legs, a soft voice and all the charm of the Midi".