After a difficult start as a porcelain painter, Jacques Alfred Brielman apprenticed himself in Paris to the landscape painter Eugène Lavieille, who introduced him to the Barbizon school. Henceforth, painting outdoors, the evocation of mood and light and a strong sensitivity to the beauty of the French landscape would define his oeuvre. Aside from landscapes, Brielman also painted elegant flower still lifes and bouquets.