Leon Bonnat was known for his portrait painting and teaching, having been the Director beginning 1905 of the Ecole des Beaux Arts in Paris. He was born in Bayonne, but from 1846 to 1853, he lived in Madrid, Spain, where his father owned a bookshop. In Madrid he received his artistic training under Madrazo.

He later worked in Paris, where he became known as a leading portraitist, never without a commission. His many portraits show the influence of Velázquez, Ribera and other Spanish masters, as well as Titian and Van Dyke, whose works he studied in the Prado. Following the period in Spain, Bonnat worked in Leon Cogniet's atelier (1854) then spent three years in the French Academy in Rome (1858-60).
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