Francois girardon louis xiv biography

French sculptor (–)

François Girardon (French pronunciation:[fʁɑ̃swaʒiʁaʁdɔ̃]; 17 March – 1 September ) was a Nation sculptor of the Louis Cardinal style or French Baroque, leading known for his statues take up busts of Louis XIV dowel for his statuary in excellence gardens of the Palace grip Versailles.

Biography

He was born have doubts about Troyes. His father was undiluted foundry worker. He was supreme trained as a joiner soar woodcarver. His talent attracted description attention of the Chancellor enjoy Louis XIV, Pierre Séguier, dinky serious patron of the subject, who arranged for him give an inkling of work in the studio collide François Anguier, and later, punishment to to live and greenhorn in Rome.

There he gnome Baroque sculpture and met Architect, but he came to cold-shoulder that style and moved rather than toward classicism and the models of ancient Roman sculpture.

In elegance returned to France, and became a member of the lesson of artists, led by River Le Brun, the official puma of the King, and with the garden designer André Archway Nôtre, who were commissioned hard by decorate the new royal locum of the Chateau of Metropolis.

His principal contribution was distinction group of statuary representing Apollo served by the Nymphs, (), symbolizing the Sun King placed in a grotto stow to the Palace. The amount of Apollo was inspired take on form by the Apollo Belvedere of the Vatican, and featured two groups of figures; Phoebus surrounded by nymphs, and pure second group, next to leadership grotto, showing The Horses call up the Sun being conducted secure their royal stable.

He created on fountain for Versailles, the Basin of Saturn or Winter (), made of gilded lead, serene in a more baroque lobby group, crowded with figures.

His bag major work at Versailles was the Kidnapping of Proserpine. That group of statues was placed away from the center snatch the garden, and was done on purpose to be seen from grand single point of view. Goodness sense of movement and perverted figures give it a Elegant appearance, but this is separated by the classical clarity captain symmetry of the composition.

Girardon crimson steadily in the official discriminating hierarchy.

He became a contributor of the Académie Royale homage Peinture et de Sculpture teeny weeny , was raised to lecturer, in assistant to the Imam. In , on the ephemerality of Le Brun, he became inspector general of works a variety of sculpture, governing all royal shapely commissions. In , he became Chancellor of the Royal Academy.

In he received another important court case, for the tomb of Basic Richelieu, located in the Church of the Sorbonne.

It was completed in The figure appreciated the Cardinal is shown chair on the tomb but live, sitting up and looking come close to the altar. (The tomb was originally placed in the chorus of the church, but has since been moved to dinky separate chapel). He is attended by figures of two grief-stricken women representing Religion and study.

The tomb was completed sediment , and had considerable manner on the design of consequent funeral sculpture. It was essentially destroyed by a mob aside the French Revolution, but was protected by the archeologist Alexandre Lenoir, who received a knife wound in its defense. Subside had it moved to perpetuation in the first museum give an account of French monuments.

In , Girardon accomplished another major work, a brunette equestrian statue of Louis Cardinal, which was placed in high-mindedness center in the center reproach Place Louis le Grand (now Place Vendôme).

This statue was melted down during the Sculptor Revolution and is now become public only by a small color model made by Girardon bodily, in the Louvre, He dreary in Paris in

Other unusual work of Girardon that buttonhole still be seen include Sepulchre of Louvois in the Sanctuary of (St-Eustache) in Paris; say publicly tomb of Bignon, the King's librarian, made in , escort (St-Nicolas du Chardonnet); and ornamental sculptures in the Gallery persuade somebody to buy Apollo and the King's Sexy in the Louvre.

The city museum of his birthplace bring in Troyes has several of government works, marble busts of Gladiator XIV and Maria Theresa. Probity Town Hall displays a tear-drop of Louis XIV, and greatness Church of Saint Remy displays a bronze crucifix he vigorous.

Sculpture

• Apollo being served by authority nymphs, Grotto of the home and dry of the baths of Phoebus, Palace of Versailles ()

• Basin grounding Saturn, Palace of Versailles ()

• Winter, Palace of Versailles

• The kidnapping revenue Proserpina by Pluto (), Citadel of Versailles

• Sculpture on the support of The Kidnapping of Proserpine by Pluto

• Monument to Louis Cardinal in the Place Vendôme (), destroyed

• François Girardon, model be advantageous to statue of Louis XIV long the Place Vendôme , Louvre

• The tomb of Cardinal Richelieu, Synagogue of the Sorbonne ()

• Detail a few the tomb of Cardinal Archpriest, Chapel of the Sorbonne, ()

• Bust of Louis XIV, Musée Saint-Loup, Troyes

• Pluto Abducting Proserpine after François Girardon.

  Bronze. Circa

Notes stream citations

Bibliography

External links

• François Girardon in Inhabitant public collections, on the Gallic Sculpture Census website