Characters from Classical Antiquity in Three Dimensions

Hans Kels the Younger
Phaedra and Hippolytus
1537
oak relief-carving on token for board game
Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna

Hans Kels the Younger
Orpheus and Eurydice
1537
oak relief-carving on token for board game
Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna

attributed to Giovanni Caccini
Phalaris and the Bull of Perillus
ca. 1590-1600
terracotta relief
Art Institute of Chicago

Ancient Greece
Stater of Lampsakos with Head of Pan
387-330 BC
gold
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

Ancient Greece
Obol of Megalopolis with Head of Pan
370-363 BC
silver
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

An Antique Gesture

I thought, as I wiped my eyes on the corner of my apron:
Penelope did this too.
And more than once: you can't keep weaving all day
And undoing it all through the night;
Your arms get tired, and the back of your neck gets tight;
And along towards morning, when you think it will never be light,
And your husband has gone, and you don't know where, for years,
Suddenly you burst into tears;
There is simply nothing else to do.

And I thought, as I wiped my eyes on the corner of my apron:
This is an ancient gesture, authentic, antique,
In the very best tradition, classic, Greek;
Ulysses did this too.
But only as a gesture, – a gesture which implied
To the assembled throng that he was much too moved to speak.
He learned it from Penelope . . .
Penelope, who really cried.

– Edna St. Vincent Millay (1949)

Ancient Greece
Statuette of Pan
3rd-2nd century BC
bronze
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

Ancient Rome
Statuette of Phrixos
1st century BC
bronze
Getty Museum, Los Angeles

Ancient Greece
Woman wearing Peplos
ca. 450 BC
terracotta statuette
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

Attic Greece
Kylix - Hercules and Antaeus (detail)
ca. 500-480 BC
painted terracotta
Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna

Attic Greece
Hydria - Achilles dragging the Corpse of Hector behind his Chariot
ca. 520-510 BC
painted terracotta
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

Attic Greece
Skyphos - Amazon mounted on a Lion, confronting a a Monster
ca. 510-500 BC
painted terracotta
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

Attic Greece
Neck Amphora - Hercules and Triton
ca. 520 BC
painted terracotta
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York

François Dumont
Titan struck by a Thunderbolt (detail)
1712
marble
Musée du Louvre

Ancient Rome
Great Eleusinian Relief
(fragment of Roman copy with with Demeter, Triptolemos and Persephone)
ca. 27 BC - AD 14
marble relief-panel
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York

17th and 18th-century Sculpture by Prominent Academicians

Pierre-François Berruer
Louis XV taking the Académie under his Protection
1770
marble relief
Musée du Louvre

"From the outset, the raison d'être of the Académie was to establish a distinction: to show that painting and sculpture were not repetitive, artisanal activities but, by virtue of their intellectual component, belonged to the liberal arts, since their creation required the concerted action of hand and mind.  Prior to 1667, this was no more than an oft-repeated affirmation backed by examples from antiquity and the old masters.  But in due course the progress of the arts became a political objective.  . . .  The discovery of the rules of art would be a title of glory not only to the Académie but to the kingdom as a whole, and their application would place France at the head of European art.  It is primarily in this respect that we can speak of the monarchy's artistic policy: the fine arts, along with the army, navy, literature, sciences, and manufactories, were intended to establish France as the leading country of Europe."

– The Académie Royale de Peinture et de Sculpture: The Birth of the French School, 1648-1793 by Christian Michel, published in France in 2012, translated by Chris Miller and published by Getty Research Institute in 2018

François Chéron
Portrait Medal of Charles Le Brun
ca. 1681
bronze
Frick Collection, New York

Guillaume Coustou the Elder
Bust of Samuel Bernard
ca. 1727
marble
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York

Guillaume Coustou the Elder
Marly Horse
(one of two)
1739-45
marble
Musée du Louvre

Guillaume Coustou the Elder
Marly Horse
(one of two)
1739-45
marble
Musée du Louvre

Jean-Louis Lemoyne
Bust of Jules Hardouin-Mansart
1703
marble
Musée du Louvre

Robert Le Lorrain
Apollo bringing Water to the Horses of the Sun
1737
marble relief
Hôtel de Rohan, Paris

Pierre Lepautre
Aeneas and Anchises
ca. 1697
marble
Musée du Louvre

Pierre Lepautre
Faun with Kid
1685
marble
Musée du Louvre

Pierre Lepautre
Arria and Paetus
1685-95
marble
Musée du Louvre

Gaspard Marsy and Anselme Flamen
Abduction of Orithyia by Boreas
1677-87
marble
Musée du Louvre

Jean-Joseph Vinache
Hercules vanquished by Love
1741
marble
Musée du Louvre

Augustin Pajou
Mercury
1780
marble
Musée du Louvre

Augustin Pajou
Neptune
1767
marble
Musée des Beaux-Arts de Lyon

Reception Pieces (Sculpture) at the Académie

Jacques Buirette
Union of Painting and Sculpture
(reception piece)
1663
marble relief
Musée du Louvre

Corneille van Clève
Polyphemus sitting on a Rock
 (reception piece)
1681
marble
Musée du Louvre

Jacques Prou
Sculpture and Painting composing a Portrait of Louis XIV
 (reception piece)
1682
marble relief
Musée du Louvre

"There was one domain in which Charles Le Brun's stanglehold might have left a stronger mark on French art: his role in setting subjects or even drawings for prizes and reception pieces.  The long allegorical commentary that Guillet de Saint-Georges devoted to Jacques Prou's bas-relief, with the assistance of a memoir given to him by the sculptor, shows both Le Brun's importance and the limits of his influence:  But this arrangement, in which Sculpture presents her drawing to Painting, is also founded on a particular thought of Monsieur Prou's, who wished me to specify it here, since he is full of gratitude for the good advice and help that he has often received from Monsieur Le Brun.  Here he has made a private confession of this, and, knowing that the execution of the principal works of the king in both painting and sculpture has often been confided to Monsieur Le Brun, he wished to give a formal idea of it by indicating that Sculpture communicates its drawing to Painting and awaits her advice.  But, at the same time, Prou takes care to indicate the excellence and merit of sculpture, and, remembering that works of painting executed for the king were at this time required to submit to the same inspection, he seeks to place the two talents as if in perfect counterpoise.  Thus, though Sculpture asks for advice, she maintains her rank, for she sits while Painting stands.  Le Brun, in short, gives his opinions and advice but does not impose his preeminence."

Guillaume Coustou the Elder
Hercules on the Pyre
 (reception piece)
1704
marble
Musée du Louvre

François Coudray
St Sebastian
 (reception piece)
1712
marble
Musée du Louvre

François Dumont
Titan struck by a Thunderbolt
 (reception piece)
1712
marble
Musée du Louvre

Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne
Death of Hippolytus
 (reception piece)
1715
marble
Musée du Louvre

"Of the forty-four statues executed [as reception pieces] between 1704 and 1791, only six represented female figures.  Since most sculptors were asked to execute in marble the modello that they had submitted for their conditional acceptance, we can – despite the fact that statues of women were in much greater demand during the eighteenth century – assume that this reflects the artist's choices.  One explanation for this disparity lies in the teaching structure of the Académie.  . . .  Life drawing was confined there to the male model, and no doubt aspirants and officers alike had absorbed the idea that the nec plus ultra of art was to impart a sense of life to a male figure.  . . .  The choice of animated, not to say contorted, figures was related to the great canonic models such as the Laocoön, of course, but also to the works of Michelangelo, Bernini, and Puget.  Only in reception pieces could an artist take on the kind of subject that was in scant demand for the decoration of townhouses and gardens.  Sculptors increasingly sought expression and a sense of movement."

Lambert-Sigisbert Adam
Neptune calming the Waves
 (reception piece)
1737
marble
Musée du Louvre

Guillaume Coustou the Younger
Seated Vulcan
 (reception piece)
1742
marble
Musée du Louvre

Paul-Ambroise Slodtz
Fall of Icarus
 (reception piece)
1743
marble
Musée du Louvre

Jean-Baptiste Pigalle
Mercury attaching his Wings
 (reception piece)
1744
marble
Musée du Louvre

"Probably the most widely appreciated reception piece of the century was Jean-Baptiste Pigalle's statue of Mercury; he presented the modello in November 1741 and the marble in July 1744.  Widely reproduced in various versions and media, including plaster, ceramic, and painting, it led to a monumental commission from the Direction des Bâtiments.  Louis XV gave the resulting marble to Frederick II of Prussia.  Pigalle contrived to execute a twisting figure with tightly grouped limbs that nevertheless retained a natural look.  It was a modern reworking of the Hellenistic bronze sculpture of a seated boy pulling a thorn from his foot known as Spinario, and was notably distinct from most of the reception pieces that had preceded it.  It paved the way for a new style in which modelling and elegance were more important than the bravura element."

Louis-Claude Vassé
Sleeping Shepherd
 (reception piece)
1751
marble
Musée du Louvre

Jacques Saly
Faun holding a Goat
 (reception piece)
1751
marble
Musée Cognacq-Jay, Paris

"The trend toward simplicity is perhaps still further developed in the work of two sculptors admitted in 1751, Jacques Saly and Louis Claude Vassé.  The former took less than a year to make a marble sculpture of the modello that he had presented for his conditional acceptance in 1750, while the latter took more than three years.  Theirs were the first reception pieces to present subjects other than the protagonists of ancient history or mythology.  Saly submitted a faun holding a kid; Vassé, a sleeping shepherd.  Both figures were reworkings of canonic antique models.  The Roman model for Saly's work was then in the hands of the Spanish monarchy and is today at the Prado: it had already been copied, notably by Anselme Flamen for the Versailles gardens and Pierre Le Pautre for the gardens of Marly.  Vassé's Sleeping Shepherd derives from the Hellenistic statue known as the Barberini Faun, of which a famous copy had been made by Vassé's master, Bourchardon, while the latter was at the Académie de France à Rome.  In both cases, the composition was considerably modified, and the sculptors added what was then thought to be one of the principle merits of modern sculpture relative to ancient ones: the accurate representation of flesh.  Imitating ancient originals was not considered copying; it was a way of emulating famous works – in some cases, it allowed the artist to show how the subject had been reconceived as a result of art's progress.  Saly's Faun was much more warmly received than Vassé's Shepherd.  Along with Pigalle's Mercury, it was one of the statues most often reproduced and copied."

Étienne-Maurice Falconet
Milo of Croton
 (reception piece)
1754
marble
Musée du Louvre

Augustin Pajou
Pluto chaining Cerberus
 (reception piece)
1760
marble
Musée du Louvre

Nicolas-Sébastien Adam
Prometheus Bound
 (reception piece)
1762
marble
Musée du Louvre

Étienne Gois
Bust of Louis XV
 (reception piece)
1770
marble
Château de Versailles

– texts and quoted passages from The Académie Royale de Peinture et de Sculpture: The Birth of the French School, 1648-1793 by Christian Michel, published in France in 2012, translated by Chris Miller and published by Getty Research Institute in 2018

Le Brun's Domination of the Académie

René-Antoine Houasse
The Golden Vessel of Louis XIV and Vases on a carpet-covered Balustrade
1683
oil on plaster
Château de Versailles

"Yet it seems likely that Le Brun's authority over the Académie was principally ensured by his role as overseer of the main royal building works.  On 29 March 1664, Berbier du Metz had launched an appeal for projects for the Grande Galerie du Louvre; although Académie officers and members alike submitted drawings, no further action was taken.  With Le Brun now responsible for "the conduct and direction of paintings in all the royal houses," progress was made, but under monopolistic conditions; the premier peintre provided all the drawings or subjects for these "royal houses," including the Grande Galerie, and the artists of the Académie thus found themselves merely carrying out designs that had originated with Le Brun.  He was, moreover, generously rewarded for his pains, receiving 4,800 livres for this responsibility and 4,000 as director of the Gobelins manufactory.  We have no reliable testimony prior to the eighteenth century that the choice of artists was left to the premier peintre, but Le Brun's pique when he was not consulted about the subjects and choice of artists for the Gobelins tapestry cartoons in 1686 indicates that, under Colbert, he must have played a highly significant role in this field.  A story told by Guillet de Saint-Georges is eloquent in this respect:

Monsieur Magnier was associated with the most upstanding of the former masters who, through the intervention of Monsieur Errard, again began negotiations with the Académie.  Several assemblies were held to this end, among them one in the rooms of the archbishop's palace, at which it was decided that several masters would be received into the body of the Académie.  Monsieur Legendre was the first to be admitted, without any obligation to have any of his works examined, since he had occupied guild offices and must therefore be considered competent: but unfortunate consequences would have arisen from this decision, and, therefore, in another assembly that took place in the former Hôtel de Grammont, Monsieur Le Brun argued that if all the masters were admitted without presenting one of their works for acceptance, no distinction would be made for the more able, and that the merits of some being thus confused with the incompetence of others, this would pave the way for disorder and injustice.  At this, several masters apprehensive of the examination withdrew; but Monsieur Magnier was the first who offered to present work for examination.  Monsieur Le Brun, in order to congratulate Monsieur Magnier on his reception and make clear to him that he would immediately be employed in the royal works, presented him with a drawing of the royal vessel that is placed on the sideboard of His Majesty's table whenever it is laid and told him to make a model of it in wood and wax, which was subsequently cast in gold by Monsieur Gravet."

Nicolas de Largillière
Portrait of Charles Le Brun
1683-86
oil on canvas
Musée du Louvre

"Nicolas de Largillière, though born in France, had trained in Antwerp, and was conditionally accepted on 6 March 1683; the reception piece required of Largillière was a portrait of Le Brun, with the size of the painting "left to his discretion."  On 6 March 1684, two officers of the Académie were appointed to watch him work: Gabriel Blanchard, a painter who was the main proponent of color, and the sculptor Étienne Le Hongre.  The fact that the model himself was not in a position to verify that the picture was indeed painted by Largillière demonstrates that, with the exception of the face, the premier peintre cannot have posed for very long.  Largillière was admitted on 30 March 1686, the requirement of a cash donation was waived, and he received a letter patent similar to those of the history painters.  He was clearly a colorist, trained in Flanders, but Le Brun chose him, knowing that this was the image of him that would remain in the halls of the Académie.  Many portraits of officers had already been painted, and it had been decided in December 1662 that a portrait of Le Brun was needed.  The premier peintre seems to have waited for the painter who seemed to him best able to present his image for posterity; similarly he preferred to have Coysevox rather than his friend Girardon sculpt his bust."

Charles-Antoine Coysevox
Bust of Charles Le Brun
ca. 1671
marble
Musée du Louvre

"Pierre Mignard's refusal to join the Académie, which continued even after his companion in that refusal, Michel Anguier, had defected and been admitted in 1668, seems to have cast doubt on the authority of the premier peintre and the prestige of the Académie itself.  The conflict remained latent until the death of Le Brun and the ultimate triumph of Mignard.  Embellished it may be, but the account of the abbé de Monville shows the limits of absolute power:

Monsieur Colbert vainly attempted all possible means of conciliation, and things went so far that he sent Perrault, on whom he relied for part of the detailed administration of the Bâtiments, ordering him to tell Mignard "that if he persisted in his disobedience, he would be made to leave the kingdom."  Perrault softened, insofar as he could, the harshness of his commission, but Mignard understood immediately what was implied.  "Monsieur," he replied, "the king is the master, but if he orders me to quit the kingdom, I am happy to obey him and will leave at once.  You understand, Monsieur, by the use of these five fingers, there is no country in Europe where I shall not enjoy greater consideration and a greater fortune that I do in France."  The Surintendant, having heard this reply, clearly perceived that there could be no expectation of him changing his mind.  He abandoned him to the general public, which compensated Mignard for the preference that the minister showed to Le Brun.

"Exceptional as his case was, Mignard is there to show that an artist could acquire real prestige while remaining outside the Académie and could even earn more by working for the public than by working for the king.  What is more, the Académie's protectors also made use of Mignard: Colbert had him paint the baptismal chapel at the church of Saint-Eustache and twice commissioned his own portrait, and, during the 1670s, Mignard painted two portraits of the king that eclipsed those painted by Le Brun.  This meant that excellent painters could be found outside the Académie – a situation that called into question the artistic monopoly that it sought to claim.  . . .  Despite this blow to its vanity, the Académie increasingly strengthened its stranglehold over painting and sculpture in France."

Pierre Mignard
Louis XIV crowned by Victory
1673
oil on canvas
Château de Versailles

Pierre Mignard
Self-portrait
ca. 1690
oil on canvas
Musée du Louvre

– texts and quoted passages from The Académie Royale de Peinture et de Sculpture: The Birth of the French School, 1648-1793 by Christian Michel, published in France in 2012, translated by Chris Miller and published by Getty Research Institute in 2018