Victor Hugo was an artist.
Victor Marie Hugo ( [ viktɔʁ maʁi yɡo ] ; 26 February 1802 -- 22 May 1885 ) was a French poet , novelist , and dramatist of the Romantic movement . He produced more than 4,000 drawings and also campaigned for social causes such as the abolition of capital punishment . Though a committed royalist when he was young , Hugo 's views changed as the decades passed , and he became a passionate supporter of republicanism ; his work touches upon most of the political and social issues and the artistic trends of his time .