Charles-Francois Sellier also known as Charles-Auguste Sellier (born 1830) was a French painter. He specialized in historical and mythological subjects. Although he was not well known during his lifetime, some of his pieces of art are considered to be forerunners of Art Nouveau. Sellier was the son of a gardener and his artistic talent was discovered at a tender age. He was apprenticed to a house-painter, after which he was enrolled at the Nancy School of Fine Arts ("École des beaux-arts de Nancy), where he studied from 1846 to 1852. At this school, he studied with Leborne Louis, who arranged for him to continue his education in art with a municipal grant. Sellier took courses in anatomy at the Preparatory School of Medicine of Nancy (École Préparatoire de Médecine de Nancy) from 1849 to 1851.
A year later, he moved to Paris, and found a position in the Léon Coignet’s workshops and later that same year, entered the School of Fine Arts. In 1854, Sellier made his first attempt at the Rome Prize with a canvas in which he depicted Abraham washing the feet of the 3 angels. He won first place in 1857, with his canvas depicting the resurrection of Lazarus. He studied at the French Academy in Rome from 1858 to 1863, but made just a few friends and discovered that his art was not appreciated by the Director, Jean-Victor Schnetz. Normally reserved and very shy, he withdrew further into himself after his father and mother died in 1863 within a few months of each other.
