François Crastre

François Crastre was a French art historian and critic who is generally listed as living from 1864 to 1937. Sources describe him as being born in Paris, studying at the École des Beaux-Arts, and later teaching at the École des Arts Décoratifs and the École des Beaux-Arts.

He is remembered above all for concise books on painters, including Rosa Bonheur, Goya, Bastien Lepage, Puvis de Chavannes, Veronese, and Henner. Several of these works were translated into English by Frederic Taber Cooper and remain widely available in public-domain editions, which has helped keep his writing in circulation.

Crastre's appeal for modern listeners is his direct, readable way of writing about art and artists. Rather than sounding academic for its own sake, his books aim to introduce a painter's life, style, and historical setting in a form that still feels accessible today.