École des Beaux-Arts

The École des Beaux-Arts is a conglomerate of buildings located in Paris at 14 rue Bonaparte, between the quai Malaquais and the rue Bonaparte, in the heart of Saint-Germain-des-Près, just across the Seine from the Louvre museum. It was founded in 1648 by Charles Le Brun as the Académie de peinture et de sculpture (the famed French Academy). In 1793 the institutes were suppressed, but in 1816, the name was changed when it merged with the Académie d'architecture. Long overseen by the Ministry of Public Instruction, the École des Beaux-Arts is now a public establishment. Most of the famous names in French art passed through the École up to and including some of the young Impressionists. Its teachers, equally renowned included Aimé-Jules Dalou, Jean-Paul Laurens (1838-1921) and Gustave Moreau.