Henri Adolphe Laissement
1854 - 1921
Henri Laissement was born in Paris in 1854. He studied in Paris and was a pupil of Cabanel. At the age of 25 he exhibited his first painting at the Salon and by 1884 he had become a member of the Salon des Artistes Francais.Laissement painted portraits and genre subjects; one of his main themes were ecclesiastical subjects which he painted with great skill and humour. He portrayed the Cardinals and Bishops in their vividly coloured robes, often showing them at leisure playing games or musical instruments. He did not offend with such subjects, indeed they were much appreciated at the time and he won several honourable mentions including one in 1889 at the Exposition Universelle. Laissement also gained various medals between 1898 and 1905. The artist died in Paris in 1921.