Jean Béraud was a celebrated French painter best known for his vivid and elegant depictions of Parisian life during the Belle Époque. His works capture the charm, sophistication, and social rhythms of late 19th-century Paris with remarkable detail and wit.
Born in Saint Petersburg to French parents, Béraud moved to Paris as a child and later studied under Léon Bonnat at the École des Beaux-Arts. Though he began with religious and historical themes, he quickly turned to the modern urban scenes that would define his career.
Béraud’s paintings offer a lively visual diary of the era—cafés, boulevards, salons, opera houses, and street life all rendered with photographic precision and subtle satire. He was especially known for portraying fashionable Parisians in both grand and mundane moments, often adding a touch of humor or irony
Blending academic technique with impressionistic sensibilities, Béraud stood out as a chronicler of his time, somewhere between classicism and modernity. His work remains a timeless window into the heart of 19th-century Parisian culture.
