A French symbolist known for his brown monochrome palette, Eugene Carriere was a close friend of the sculptor Rodin. Carriere's work influenced both Matisse and Picasso (whose Blue period shows elements of Carriere's monochrome). He was one of the leaders in the secessionist movement in France.

Eugene Anatole Carriere was born on January 16, 1849 in Gournay Seine et Marne (currently Seine Saint-Denis). He grew up in Strasbourg where he trained with a lithographer. Despite his father's disapproval, he registered at the Paris School of Fine Arts. Later, he studied under the painter Alexandre Cabanel. He married Sophie Desmouceaux, with whom he had seven children. The scenes he most often painted were straight out of his ...