Henri-Michel-Antoine Chapu (29 September 1833 – 21 April 1891) was a French

sculptor Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

in a modified Neoclassical tradition who was known for his use of allegory in his work.

Life and career

Born in

Le Mée-sur-Seine Le Mée-sur-Seine (, literally ''Le Mée on Seine'') is a commune in the Seine-et-Marne department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France, next to Melun. It is located in the south-eastern suburbs of Paris from the center. Geogra ...

into modest circumstances, Chapu moved to Paris with his family and in 1847 entered the Petit École with the intention of studying drawing and becoming an interior decorator. There his talents began to be recognized and he was admitted to the

École des Beaux-Arts École des Beaux-Arts (; ) refers to a number of influential art schools in France. The term is associated with the Beaux-Arts style in architecture and city planning that thrived in France and other countries during the late nineteenth century ...

in 1849. In 1850 he began working and studying with a well-known sculptor

James Pradier James Pradier (born Jean-Jacques Pradier, ; 23 May 1790 – 4 June 1852) was a Genevan-born French sculpture, sculptor best known for his work in the neoclassicism, neoclassical style. Life and work Born in Geneva (then Republic of Geneva), Prad ...

Following Pradier's death in 1852 Chapu began studying with another sculptor,

Francisque Duret Francisque Joseph Duret (; 19 October 1804 – 26 May 1865) was a French sculptor, son and pupil of François-Joseph Duret (1732–1816). Life and career Before becoming a sculptor, Francisque Duret had shown interest in pursuing a career in thea ...

. After coming in second in 1851, he won the Prix de Rome in 1855, then spent five years in Italy. His statues ''Mercury'' of 1861 and ''Jeanne d'Arc'' of 1870 (in which she was represented as a peasant girl) were his first big successes, and led to many commissions thereafter. He is also known for his

medal A medal or medallion is a small portable artistic object, a thin disc, normally of metal, carrying a design, usually on both sides. They typically have a commemorative purpose of some kind, and many are presented as awards. They may be int ...

s, and led the French revival in the medal as an artistic form. Chapu taught at Paris'

Academie Julian An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, f ...

. Among his students was American sculptor

Cyrus Dallin Cyrus Edwin Dallin (November 22, 1861 – November 14, 1944) was an American sculptor best known for his depictions of Native Americans. He created more than 260 works, including the ''Equestrian Statue of Paul Revere'' in Boston, Massac ...

who studied under him in 1888-1889. An Officer of the French

Legion of Honor The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...

, Chapu died in Paris in 1891. At least four full-scale reproductions of ''Jeanne d'Arc'' are on permanent display at universities in Virginia: in McConnell Library at

Radford University Radford University is a public university in Radford, Virginia. It is one of the state's eight doctorate-granting public universities. Founded in 1910, Radford offers curricula for undergraduates in more than 100 fields, graduate programs inclu ...

in Radford, Virginia; beneath the rotunda in

Ruffner Hall The Rotunda is the name given to a building on the campus of Longwood University in Farmville, Virginia. It was formerly known as Ruffner Hall, but the name was changed in 2019. The original Rotunda was built in 1839 and gradually expanded along ...

Longwood University Longwood University is a public university in Farmville, Virginia. Founded in 1839, it is the third-oldest public university in Virginia and one of the hundred oldest institutions of higher education in the United States. Previously a college, Lo ...

Farmville, Virginia Farmville is a town in Prince Edward and Cumberland counties in the U.S. state of Virginia. The population was 8,216 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Prince Edward County. Farmville developed near the headwaters of the Appomattox R ...

; at James Madison University; and at the

University of Mary Washington The University of Mary Washington (UMW) is a public liberal arts university in Fredericksburg, Virginia. Founded in 1908 as the Fredericksburg Teachers College, the institution was named Mary Washington College in 1938 after Mary Ball Washingt ...

.Joan of Arc
@ James Madison University.

Notable works

*Monument to Henri Regnault in the courtyard of

(1872) *Tomb of

Marie d'Agoult Marie Cathérine Sophie, Comtesse d'Agoult (née de Flavigny; 31 December 18055 March 1876), was a Franco-German romantic author and historian, known also by her pen name, Daniel Stern. Life Marie was born in Frankfurt am Main, Germany, with th ...

(1877) *''Four Seasons'' on the facade of grande magasin Printemps, Paris (1881–89), for architect

Paul Sédille Paul Sédille (16 June 1836, Paris – 6 January 1900) was a French architect and theorist; and designed the 1880 reconstruction of the iconic Magasins du Printemps department store in Paris. Life Though Sédille is best known for his Printem ...

*Monument to

Gustave Flaubert Gustave Flaubert ( , , ; 12 December 1821 – 8 May 1880) was a French novelist. Highly influential, he has been considered the leading exponent of literary realism in his country. According to the literary theorist Kornelije Kvas, "in Flauber ...

(1890), his last major work.

References

*Fusco, Peter and H. W. Janson, editors, ''The Romantics to Rodin'', Los Angeles County Museum of Art 1980 *Mackay, James, ''The Dictionary of Sculptors in Bronze'', Antique Collectors Club, Woodbridge, Suffolk 1977

External links

* 1833 births 1891 deaths French medallists Académie Julian faculty Prix de Rome for sculpture Members of the Académie des beaux-arts Officiers of the Légion d'honneur 19th-century French sculptors French male sculptors 19th-century French male artists {{France-sculptor-stub

Life and career

Notable works

See also

References

External links