Jean Désiré Gustave Courbet (10 June 1819–31 December 1877) was a French painter. He was the leader of the Realist movement in 19th-century French painting. Courbet is very important in French painting for two reasons. Firstly, he was prepared to try out new ideas and ways of painting. Secondly, his paintings made social comment on the world around him. In other words, he was not afraid to show "real life" in a way that was not always beautiful and nice.