Vlaho Bukovac

Vlaho Bukovac was born Biagio Faggioni on July 4, 1855, in Cavtat near Dubrovnik. After adventurous wanderings as a sailor and sign painter in San Francisco, Bukovac studied at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris under Alexandre Cabanel, exhibiting regularly at the Paris Salon.

Settling in Zagreb in 1893, Bukovac revolutionized Croatian painting with luminous plein-air palettes, inspiring the 'Zagreb Colour School' and building the Art Pavilion. From 1903 until his death, he served as professor at the prestigious Prague Academy of Fine Arts, training generations of Central European painters.