Paul DUBOIS (1829-1905) - Lot 265

Lot 265
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Estimation :
5000 - 8000 EUR
Paul DUBOIS (1829-1905) - Lot 265
Paul DUBOIS (1829-1905) The Charity Bronze proof with a shaded brown patina. About 1880. Signed P. Dubois on the back. Bears the mark of the founder F. Barbedienne Paris and n° 930 on the left side of the base and bears the circular stamp Reduction A. Collas on the back. H. 82 cm RELATED LITERATURE : Florence Rionnet, op. cit, model listed under cat. 692 p.314 and 315. Repr. p. 65. Catalogue des sculptures du musée de Troyes fondé et dirigé par la Société académique de l'Aube, Musée de Troyes éd, 1931, p. 40 ; p. 42-43, cat. n°127. RELATED WORK: Paul Dubois, La Charité, bronze chief model, between 1876 and 1879, Barbedienne foundryman, H. 95,5 W. 38 D. 50 cm On the death of General de La Moricière (1806-1865), General Changarnier and the committee he chaired wished to have a funerary monument erected in Nantes cathedral in honour of the deceased. The reason for this privilege was General de La Moricière's involvement with Pope Pius IX, whose troops he had led. The project began in 1869, entrusted to the architect Louis Boitte and the sculptor Paul Dubois. Both found inspiration in the Renaissance. The works of Paul Dubois betray the influence of Michelangelo, particularly in the allegorical figure of Military Courage. Alongside the latter, three other virtues exalt the life of the general. In addition to Military Courage, the virtues of Faith, Wisdom and finally Charity are represented at the other angles. The latter was presented at the 1876 Salon, alongside Military Courage. The admiration aroused by these two sculptures was such that they were described as "masterpieces of contemporary sculpture". The work loses its original meaning as an allegory of Charity and becomes instead a republican symbol of fertility and abundance represented by the mother figure. The success was immediate and these two works earned Paul Dubois the medal of honour for sculpture as well as the recognition of the Academy, which offered him the chance to succeed Perraud at the Institute.
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