Jean-Antoine Houdon (; 20 March 1741 – 15 July 1828) was a French neoclassical sculptor. Houdon is famous for his portrait busts and statues of philosophers, inventors and political figures of the Enlightenment. Houdon's subjects included

Denis Diderot Denis Diderot (; ; 5 October 171331 July 1784) was a French philosopher, art critic, and writer, best known for serving as co-founder, chief editor, and contributor to the '' Encyclopédie'' along with Jean le Rond d'Alembert. He was a promi ...

(1771),

Benjamin Franklin Benjamin Franklin ( April 17, 1790) was an American polymath who was active as a writer, scientist, inventor, statesman, diplomat, printer, publisher, and political philosopher. Encyclopædia Britannica, Wood, 2021 Among the leading inte ...

(1778-1809),

Jean-Jacques Rousseau Jean-Jacques Rousseau (, ; 28 June 1712 – 2 July 1778) was a Genevan philosopher, writer, and composer. His political philosophy influenced the progress of the Age of Enlightenment throughout Europe, as well as aspects of the French Revolu ...

(1778),

Voltaire François-Marie Arouet (; 21 November 169430 May 1778) was a French Enlightenment writer, historian, and philosopher. Known by his ''nom de plume'' M. de Voltaire (; also ; ), he was famous for his wit, and his criticism of Christianity—es ...

(1781),

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 worl ...

(1781),

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of ...

(1785–1788),

Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, philosopher, and Founding Father who served as the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was previously the natio ...

(1789),

Louis XVI Louis XVI (''Louis-Auguste''; ; 23 August 175421 January 1793) was the last King of France before the fall of the monarchy during the French Revolution. He was referred to as ''Citizen Louis Capet'' during the four months just before he was ...

(1790),

Robert Fulton Robert Fulton (November 14, 1765 – February 24, 1815) was an American engineer and inventor who is widely credited with developing the world's first commercially successful steamboat, the (also known as ''Clermont''). In 1807, that steamboa ...

(1803–04), and

Napoléon Bonaparte Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

(1806).

Biography

Houdon was born in

Versailles The Palace of Versailles ( ; french: Château de Versailles ) is a former royal residence built by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, about west of Paris, France. The palace is owned by the French Republic and since 1995 has been managed, ...

, on 20 March 1741. In 1752, he entered the Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture, where he studied with René-Michel Slodtz,

Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne (15 February 1704 – 1778) was a French sculptor of the 18th century who worked in both the rococo and neoclassical style. He made monumental statuary for the Gardens of Versailles but was best known for his expressive p ...

, and Jean-Baptiste Pigalle. From 1761 to 1764, he studied at the École royale des élèves protégés. Houdon 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 ...

in 1761, but was not greatly influenced by ancient and

Renaissance art Renaissance art (1350 – 1620 AD) is the painting, sculpture, and decorative arts of the period of European history known as the Renaissance, which emerged as a distinct style in Italy in about AD 1400, in parallel with developments which occ ...

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

. His stay in the city is marked by two characteristic and important productions: the superb

écorché An ''écorché'' () is a figure drawn, painted, or sculpted showing the muscles of the body without skin, normally as a figure study for another work or as an exercise for a student artist. The Renaissance-era architect, theorist and all-around R ...

(1767), an anatomical model which has served as a guide to all artists since his day, and the statue of Saint Bruno in the church of

Santa Maria degli Angeli e dei Martiri The Basilica of St. Mary of the Angels and of the Martyrs ( la, Beatissimae Virginis et omnium Angelorum et Martyrum, it, Santa Maria degli Angeli e dei Martiri) is a basilica and titular church in Rome, Italy, built inside the ruined ''frigida ...

in Rome. After four years in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

, Houdon returned to

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

. He submitted ''Morpheus'' to the Salon of 1771. He developed his practise of portrait busts. He became a member of the

Académie de peinture et de sculpture 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, ...

in 1771, and a professor in 1778. In 1778, he modeled

, producing a portrait bust with wig for the

Comédie-Française The Comédie-Française () or Théâtre-Français () is one of the few state theatres in France. Founded in 1680, it is the oldest active theatre company in the world. Established as a French state-controlled entity in 1995, it is the only state ...

; one for the Palace of Versailles, and one for Catherine the Great. In 1778, he joined the masonic lodge

Les Neuf Sœurs La Loge des Neuf Sœurs (; The Nine Sisters), established in Paris in 1776, was a prominent French Masonic Lodge of the Grand Orient de France that was influential in organising French support for the American Revolution. A "Société des Neuf Sœ ...

, where he later met

, and

John Paul Jones John Paul Jones (born John Paul; July 6, 1747 July 18, 1792) was a Scottish-American naval captain who was the United States' first well-known naval commander in the American Revolutionary War. He made many friends among U.S political elites ( ...

. For Salon of 1781, he submitted a ''Diana'' which was refused without drapery. Houdon's portrait sculpture of Washington was the result of a specific invitation by Benjamin Franklin to cross the Atlantic in 1785, specifically to visit

Mount Vernon Mount Vernon is an American landmark and former plantation of Founding Father, commander of the Continental Army in the Revolutionary War, and the first president of the United States George Washington and his wife, Martha. The estate is on ...

, so that Washington could model for him. Washington sat for wet clay life models and a plaster life mask. These models served for many commissions of Washington, including the standing figure commissioned by the

Virginia General Assembly The Virginia General Assembly is the legislative body of the Commonwealth of Virginia, the oldest continuous law-making body in the Western Hemisphere, the first elected legislative assembly in the New World, and was established on July 30, 16 ...

, for the

Virginia State Capitol The Virginia State Capitol is the seat of state government of the Commonwealth of Virginia, located in Richmond, the third capital city of the U.S. state of Virginia. (The first two were Jamestown and Williamsburg.) It houses the oldest elected ...

in Richmond. Numerous variations of the Washington bust were produced, portraying him variously as a general in uniform, in the classical manner showing chest musculature, and as Roman Consul Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus clad in a toga. A cast of the latter is located in the

Vermont State House The Vermont State House, located in Montpelier, is the state capitol of the U.S. state of Vermont. It is the seat of the Vermont General Assembly. The current Greek Revival structure is the third building on the same site to be used as the Sta ...

. In the 1780s Houdon produced two semi-nude sculptures, ''Winter'' and ''Bather''. Perceived as bourgeois for his connections to the court of Louis XVI, he fell out of favour during the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in coup of 18 Brumaire, November 1799. Many of its ...

, although he escaped imprisonment. Houdon returned to favor during the

French Consulate The Consulate (french: Le Consulat) was the top-level Government of France from the fall of the Directory in the coup of 18 Brumaire on 10 November 1799 until the start of the Napoleonic Empire on 18 May 1804. By extension, the term ''The Co ...

and

Empire An empire is a "political unit" made up of several territories and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the empire (sometimes referred to as the metropole) ex ...

, being taken on as one of the original artistic team for what became the Column of the Grande Armée at Wimille. He was made a Chevalier de la

Légion d'honneur 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 ...

, on 17 December 1804.Houdon died in Paris on 15 July 1828, and was interred at the Montparnasse Cemetery.

Family

On 1 July 1786, he married Marie-Ange-Cecile Langlois; they had three daughters: Sabine, Anne-Ange, and Claudine.

Legacy and influence

Houdon's sculptures were used as models for the engravings used on various U.S. postage stamps of the late 19th and early 20th centuries which depict Washington in profile.Smithsonian National Postal Museum
/ref>

Gallery

File:Bust of the Marquis de Miromesnil, 1775 CE. From Paris, France. By Jean-Antoine Houdon. The Victoria and Albert Museum, London.jpg, Bust of Armand Thomas Hue de Miromesnil, 1775,

Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...

File:HoudonWashingtonNPG.jpg, Bust of

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

based on a life mask cast in 1786, National Portrait Gallery File:P1020216 Musée Angers Houdon marbre Voltaire rwk.JPG, Bust of

, 1778, Musée des Beaux-Arts d'Angers File:Jean-Antoine Houdon, Voltaire, 1778, NGA 1266.jpg, ''Voltaire'', 1778, National Gallery of Art File:Juliette Récamier. Buste de Houdon, d'après Chinard. Vue de face.jpg, Bust of Madame Récamier after Joseph Chinard File:Virginia State Capitol complex - Houdon's Washington, seen from the front.jpg, ''

,'' Virginia State Capitol complex File:Houdon Jean Antoine, Voltaire assis, terre cuite, Musée Fabre, Montpellier.jpg, ''Seated Voltaire'',

Musée Fabre The Musée Fabre is a museum in the southern French city of Montpellier, capital of the Hérault ''département''. The museum was founded by François-Xavier Fabre, a Montpellier painter, in 1825. Beginning in 2003, the museum underwent a 61.2 mi ...

File:Houdon Jean Antoine, L'écorché bras levé, Musée Fabre, Montpellier.jpg, Skinned Man,

File:Houdon Jean Antoine, La frileuse 2.jpg, ''

Winter Winter is the coldest season of the year in polar and temperate climates. It occurs after autumn and before spring. The tilt of Earth's axis causes seasons; winter occurs when a hemisphere is oriented away from the Sun. Different cultur ...

'', 1783,

File:SculpturesMuséeFabre26a Houdon Eté.jpg, ''The Summer'', 1785, Fabre Museum File:The Gulbenkian Museum (42416563422).jpg, '' Diana'', 1780, Calouste Gulbenkian Museum File:Bust of Anne-Marie-Louise Thomas de Domangeville de Sérilly, Comtesse de Pange (1780).jpg, Bust of Anne-Marie-Louise Thomas de Domangeville de Sérilly, Comtesse de Pange (1780), Art Institute of Chicago File:Madame Houdon - Jean-Antoine Houdon - musée du Louvre.jpg, Madame Houdon,

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 ...

Notes

References

* * * * * * ; Kessinger Publishing, 2006, *

External links

Virtual Gallery

(Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History)
''Art and the empire city: New York, 1825–1861''
an exhibition catalog from The Metropolitan Museum of Art (fully available online as PDF), which contains material on Houdon (see index) * {{DEFAULTSORT:Houdon, Jean Antoine 1741 births 1828 deaths People from Versailles 18th-century French sculptors French male sculptors 19th-century French sculptors Members of the Académie des beaux-arts Prix de Rome for sculpture People of the French Revolution Les Neuf Sœurs French Freemasons Burials at Montparnasse Cemetery 19th-century French male artists 18th-century French male artists