Imagine a giant painting, over eight feet tall, showing a woman holding a flag high above a crowd. She is stepping over fallen fighters, leading people toward freedom. This is Liberty Leading the People, and it was painted by Eugene Delacroix, born on April 26, 1798, in France. Delacroix created the painting after a revolution in Paris in 1830. Other painters of his time focused on careful, precise details. Delacroix was different. He used sweeping brushstrokes and bold colors that made his paintings feel alive with energy. His style was called Romanticism because it focused on feelings rather than perfect accuracy. Delacroix was also one of the first European artists to travel to North Africa. In 1832, he visited Morocco and Algeria, where the bright sunlight and colorful markets changed how he used color. He started placing complementary colors next to each other to make them appear even brighter. This technique later inspired a whole group of painters called the Impressionists. Today, Liberty Leading the People hangs in the Louvre museum in Paris and appears on French stamps, coins. Even textbooks. It remains one of the most recognized paintings in the world.