A life shaped by the brush Adolphe Félix Cals came from a humble family where his parents worked to keep him away from manual labor. His early years were spent learning the precise, careful craft of engraving under Jean-Louis Anselin. When Anselin passed away, the path continued through the hands of Ponce and Bosc, eventually leading him to the studio of Léon Cogniet at the École des Beaux-Arts. This period was marked by a quiet friction between teacher and pupil. While Cogniet pushed for a more popular, accessible style, Cals chose to follow his own inclinations, even when it meant facing p…