Société des Artistes Français in the context of "Paris salon"

Théodore Jacques Ralli or Theodorus Rallis (full name: Theodoros Rallis-Scaramanga; Greek: Θεόδωρος Ράλλης; Constantinople, 16 February 1852 – 2 October 1909, Lausanne) was a Greek painter, watercolourist and draughtsman, who spent most of his working life in France, Greece and Egypt. Ralli was an Academic, Orientalist and Impressionist painter. He painted genre works, portraits, local figures, architectural subjects, interiors with figures and animals. Ralli is known for his orientalist paintings and paintings of Greek everyday life. Ralli was from a wealthy Greek family known as the Ralli family. They were one of the wealthiest and most successful Greek merchant families of the 19th century, and the Ralli company was operated primarily by the extended family. They had operations spanning the entire world. Maria Katsanaki’s 2007 dissertation features a catalog of over 400 paintings attributed to Ralli. Most of his works are in private collections. Rallis was a student of Jean-Léon Gérôme and Jean-Jules-Antoine Lecomte du Nouy, both painters were orientalist, and Gérôme also painted in the style known as academicism. Ralli was considered one of Gérôme's best students. His work The Booty drew inspiration from Gérôme's The Slave Market.

Ralli was born in Constantinople, which is now known as Istanbul, to a Greek family originally from Chios on his father Iakovos' side; his mother Katina was from the Greek island Syros. From a young age, he was interested in painting, but due to his family's opposition to a professional painting career, he went to work for the Ralli family business in London until his father's death in 1871. He travelled to Paris as early as 1873 and learned painting, showing an interest in academicism and oriental art, although some of his works reveal Impressionism. In 1875, his works were accepted and exhibited by the prestigious Paris Salon. The young painter also became a member of the Société des Artistes Français and maintained a studio in Paris for the remainder of his life. After 1879, Rallis travelled to London and exhibited his works at the Royal Academy in London and continued an affiliation with the institution throughout his life.

The Salon, or sometimes Paris Salon (French: Salon de Paris [salɔ̃ d(ə) paʁi]), beginning in 1667, was the official art exhibition of the Académie des Beaux-Arts in Paris. Between 1748 and 1890 it was arguably the greatest annual or biennial art event in the Western world.

At the Salon of 1761, thirty-three painters, nine sculptors, and eleven engravers contributed. From 1881 onward, it was managed by the Société des Artistes Français.

Jacques-Louis Barcat (Paris, 1 July 1877 – Le Mans, 1 December 1955) was a French painter, known for his naturalistic paintings and (family) portraits. He was a student of Jean-Léon Gérôme and Ernest Hébert. As a member of the Société des Artistes Français he took part in the exhibitions (Salons) from 1905 to 1936. Barcat mainly worked in Paris and Le Mans.

The Société des Artistes Indépendants (French pronunciation: [sɔsjete dez‿aʁtist(z‿)ɛ̃depɑ̃dɑ̃], Society of Independent Artists) or Salon des Indépendants (pronounced [salɔ̃ dez ͜ ɛ̃depɑ̃dɑ̃]) was formed in Paris on 29 July 1884. The association began with the organization of massive exhibitions in Paris, choosing the slogan "sans jury ni récompense" ("without jury nor reward"). Albert Dubois-Pillet, Odilon Redon, Georges Seurat and Paul Signac were among its founders. For the following three decades their annual exhibitions set the trends in art of the early 20th century, along with the Salon d'Automne. This is where artworks were often first displayed and widely discussed. World War I brought a closure to the salon, though the Artistes Indépendants remained active. Since 1920, the headquarters has been located in the vast basements of the Grand Palais (next door to the Société des Artistes Français, the Société Nationale des Beaux-Arts, the Société du Salon d'Automne, and others).