After Jean-Antoine Houdon

After JEAN-ANTOINE HOUDON (Versailles, 1741 - Paris, 1828).
A pair of patinated bronze busts of Rousseau and Voltaire in the manner of Roman Emperors. 19th Century.
Unsigned.
Measurements: 23 x 12,5 x 9,5 cm.
Jean-Antoine Houdon was a French sculptor, a leading figure of French Neoclassicism. His portraits were notable for their search for individual character, which brought him close to pre-Romanticism. A pupil of Jean-Baptiste Pigalle and Lemoyne, he moved to Rome in 1764 to complete his training. He devoted himself chiefly to portraiture, beginning the series with a portrait of Diderot in terracotta, followed by those of Mirabeau, D'Alembert, Molière, Voltaire, Rousseau and Franklin. The latter suggested to him the idea of travelling to the United States to portray Washington. Houdon arrived on the American continent in 1785 and, in addition to several busts of the president, produced the statue now on display in the Capitol. During the French Revolution, he painted the faces of Necker, Lafayette and Napoleon.

COMMENTS

Minor traces of use.