Henri Manguin studied at the École des Beaux-Arts under the great symbolist painter Gustave Moreau. In Moreau’s class, Manguin met and befriended Henri Matisse, who would later become one of the leading figures of Fauvism. Inspired by the light of the Impressionists and the color experiments of earlier Post-Impressionists, yet adding their own unique intensity, the group became known as the Fauvists. The name comes from a remark by art critic Louis Vauxcelles, who described the exhibition as featuring “Donatello chez les fauves” (“Donatello among the wild beasts”), after seeing a Renaissance-style sculpture by Albert Marque surrounded by canvases marked by an “orgy of pure tones.” Manguin used these “pure tones” and expressive brushstrokes to paint his favorite subject: his wife, Jeanne, whom he portrayed countless times.