- Rosa Bonheur (French, 1822-99). Achieved wealth and fame even in her youth as a superb painter, mainly of animals. Dressed as a man in order to inspect stables and slaughterhouses. Was given a legal permit in 1857 to continue male attire. Bought a chateau which she shared with her companion, Nathalie Micas, also an artist. There they maintained a cageless animal preserve for countless species from parakeets to lions. Bonheur's portrayals of all these creatures, her passion, are widely considered to be the definitive paintings of the animal kingdom. Engraving of Bonheur by Augustus Robin; the yearling is by Bonheur.
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