Seurre, Bernard Gabriel, aîné, BNF Gallica

Bernard-Gabriel Seurre or Seurre the Elder (11 July 1795 – 3 October 1867) was a French sculptor. His younger brother Charles Émile Seurre (1798–1858) was also a sculptor.

Life

Born in Paris, Bernard Seurre was a student of the sculptor

Pierre Cartellier Pierre Cartellier (2 December 1757 – 12 June 1831) was a French sculptor. Biography Born in Paris, he studied at the École Gratuite de Dessin in Paris and then in the studio of Charles-Antoine Bridan before attending the Académie Roya ...

. In 1818 Bernard Seurre won the

Prix de Rome The Prix de Rome () or Grand Prix de Rome was a French scholarship for arts students, initially for painters and sculptors, that was established in 1663 during the reign of Louis XIV of France. Winners were awarded a bursary that allowed them t ...

for sculpture with a relief on the subject ''Chilonis imploring mercy for her husband Cleombrotus''Cleombrotus married Chilonis, daughter of

Leonidas II Leonidas II (; grc, Λεωνίδας Β΄, ''Leōnídas B, "Lion's son, Lion-like") was the 28th Agiad King of Sparta from 254 to 242 BC and from 241 to 235 BC. Biography Leonidas was the son of Cleonymus and grandson of king Cleomenes II (), ...

, king of Lacedemonia, and shortly after the marriage usurped Leonidas' throne and condemned him to exile. Cleombrotus did not last long in power and the Lacedomnians, tired of his tyrannical government, recalled Leonidas. He returned and wanted to punish Cleombrotus, who took refuge in the temple of Neptune. Leonidas went to the temple with friends and soldiers intent on killing Cleombrotus, but Chilonis took one of her children to see Leonidas and asked for mercy from him. (Plutarch, ''Life of

Agis Agis or AGIS may refer to: People * Agis I (died 900 BC), Spartan king * Agis II (died 401 BC), Spartan king * Agis III (died 331 BC), Spartan king * Agis IV (265–241 BC), Spartan king * Agis (Paeonian) (died 358 BC), King of the Paeonians * Ag ...

, chapters 16-18) He then produced sculptures for the

Arc de Triomphe The Arc de Triomphe de l'Étoile (, , ; ) is one of the most famous monuments in Paris, France, standing at the western end of the Champs-Élysées at the centre of Place Charles de Gaulle, formerly named Place de l'Étoile—the ''étoile'' ...

between 1833 and 1836 and produced a design for a sculpture on top of it in 1833 (though this was never realized). He died in Paris.

Works

Arc de triomphe

* ''The Battle of Aboukir'', bas-relief, stone, east façade (champs-Élysées side), above ''The Apotheosis of Napoleon I'' and ''The Triumph of 1810'' by

Jean-Pierre Cortot Jean-Pierre Cortot (20 August 1787 – 12 August 1843) was a French neoclassical sculptor. Life Cortot was born and died in Paris. He was educated at the École des Beaux Arts in Paris, and won the Prix de Rome in 1809, residing in the Vi ...

Entablature An entablature (; nativization of Italian , from "in" and "table") is the superstructure of moldings and bands which lies horizontally above columns, resting on their capitals. Entablatures are major elements of classical architecture, and ...

frieze, west façade (avenue de la Grande-Armée side), right half *

frieze, south façade (avenue Kléber side), left half * ''Design for sculpture on top of the Arc de triomphe - allegory of France victorious'' (1833), drawing, Paris,

musée d'Orsay The Musée d'Orsay ( , , ) ( en, Orsay Museum) is a museum in Paris, France, on the Left Bank of the Seine. It is housed in the former Gare d'Orsay, a Beaux-Arts railway station built between 1898 and 1900. The museum holds mainly French art ...

Other

* ''

Molière Jean-Baptiste Poquelin (, ; 15 January 1622 (baptised) – 17 February 1673), known by his stage name Molière (, , ), was a French playwright, actor, and poet, widely regarded as one of the greatest writers in the French language and world ...

standing in meditation'', over-life-size, bronze, Paris,

Musée du Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is the world's most-visited museum, and an historic landmark in Paris, France. It is the home of some of the best-known works of art, including the ''Mona Lisa'' and the ''Venus de Milo''. A central l ...

* ''

'', bronze, Paris, 1844,

fontaine Molière The Fontaine Molière is a fountain in the 1st arrondissement of Paris, at the junction of rue Molière and rue de Richelieu. Its site was occupied by a fountain known as the ''fontaine Richelieu'' until 1838, when it was demolished due to interfe ...

, junction of rue de Richelieu and la rue Molière * ''Jean de La Fontaine'', statue, marble, Paris, palais de l' Institut * ''Modesty'', statue, Paris, cimetière du Père-Lachaise, tomb of Pierre Cartellier, left side * ''Portrait of

Nicolas Béhuchet Nicolas Béhuchet (1288 – 24 June 1340), also known as Colin Béhuchet, was a French admiral and financier. Together with Hugues Quiéret, he commanded the French fleet during the early phases of the Hundred Years' War. At the battle of Arn ...

, admiral of France, died 1340'' (vers 1838), bust, plaster, Versailles, châteaux de Versailles et de Trianon

Sources

* Pierre Kjellberg, ''Le Nouveau guide des statues de Paris'', La Bibliothèque des Arts, Paris, 1988. * Emmanuel Schwartz, ''Les Sculptures de l'École des Beaux-Arts de Paris. Histoire, doctrines, catalogue'', École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts, Paris, 2003. * Charles Reutlinger, ''Portrait de Bernard Gabriel Seurre'', photographs, Paris, musée d'Orsay

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Seurre, Bernard 1795 births 1867 deaths 19th-century French sculptors French male sculptors 19th-century French male artists