Pierre-Jean David d'Angers (1788-1856) - Lot 65

Lot 65
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Pierre-Jean David d'Angers (1788-1856) - Lot 65
Pierre-Jean David d'Angers (1788-1856) Victor Hugo at the age of thirty-five Circa 1838 Hermes bronze bust in patinated plaster Dedicated, signed and dated "A VICTOR HUGO / SON AMI P.J. DAVID / 1837" Bears the number "S 128" in ink on the inside. H. 76 cm Provenance: - Given by the sculptor to Louis Pavie (1782-1859) - Estate of Mme Voisin Chasles, descendant of Louis Pavie - Sold in Angers on 13/06/1994. Related work : -David d'Angers, Buste de Victor Hugo, 1837, terracotta, dedicated, signed and dated "A SON AMI / VICTOR HUGO /. P.J. DAVID D'ANGERS / 1837", H. 66 x W. 39.5 x D. 35 cm, Angers, galerie David d'Angers, inv. MBA 838.19. Related literature: -V. Huchard, Galerie David d'Angers, Angers, Siraudeau et Cie, 1ç89, p. 48, pp. 77-78 for the terracotta version, p. 138 ; -F. Baron, Musée du Louvre, Département des Sculptures du Moyen Age de la Renaissance et des Temps modernes, Sculpture française, t.1, Moyen Age, Paris, 1996, t.1, bronze medallion right profile of Victor Hugo listed under no. RF 3041, p. 202. An important Angevin figure, poet, writer and bookseller Louis Pavie was one of David d'Angers' closest friends. From 1811 to 1835, he edited one of Angers' very first newspapers, Les Affiches d'Angers, and also held various political positions. He was a member of the town council from 1820 to 1826, then deputy mayor from 1826 to 1830. In 1839, he was also behind the creation of the Galerie David d'Angers, which presents a copy of each model produced by the artist. Louis Pavie maintained an epistolary correspondence with the artist throughout his life. This literary testimony reveals both the sculptor's creative process and the political ideas and humanist ideals shared by these two republican champions. The sculpture we are presenting is particularly noteworthy in that it highlights the role played by Louis Pavie in the sculptor's encounter with Victor Hugo. It was Pavie who introduced Hugo to David d'Angers in May 1827. While the Musée David d'Angers holds the terracotta version of this portrait, this plaster cast appears to be the only known copy bearing the same signatures, dates and dedications. The poet and the sculptor held each other in high esteem and regularly rubbed shoulders. Hugo appreciated both the man and the artist, whom he considered "a poet of marble". As early as 1827, David depicted Hugo in a relief on the pedestal of his monument to General Foy, and in 1828 he created a medallion portrait of him. Ten years later, the sculptor immortalized Victor Hugo, modeling a bust whose expressiveness reveals the visionary poet's inner strength. With his tie carelessly knotted and his gaze lost beneath a monumental brow, the writer is seen as the embodiment of Romantic genius. Hugo appreciates the tribute and thanks David: "In this magnificent form, my friend, you are sending me immortality... You are an admirable man and I love you.
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