Jean Alexandre Joseph Falguière (; also given as Jean-Joseph-Alexandre Falguière, or in short Alexandre Falguière) (7 September 183120 April 1900) was a French sculptor and painter.

Biography

Falguière was born in

Toulouse Toulouse (, ; ; ) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Haute-Garonne department and of the Occitania (administrative region), Occitania region. The city is on the banks of the Garonne, River Garonne, from ...

. A pupil of the

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

, he 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 1859; he was awarded the medal of honor at the

Paris Salon The Salon (), or rarely Paris Salon (French: ''Salon de Paris'' ), beginning in 1667 was the official art exhibition of the in Paris. Between 1748 and 1890 it was arguably the greatest annual or biennial art event in the Western world. At the ...

in 1868 and was appointed

Officer of the Legion of Honor The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

in 1878. Falguière's first

bronze statue Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals (such as phosphorus) or metalloids (su ...

of importance was ''Le Vainqueur au Combat de Coqs (Victor of the

Cockfight Cockfighting is a blood sport involving domesticated roosters as the combatants. The first documented use of the word gamecock, denoting use of the cock as to a "game", a sport, pastime or entertainment, was recorded in 1634, after the term ...

)'' (1864), and '' Tarcisius the Christian Boy-Martyr'' followed in 1867; both were exhibited in the

Luxembourg Museum Luxembourg, officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, is a landlocked country in Western Europe. It is bordered by Belgium to the west and north, Germany to the east, and France on the south. Its capital and most populous city, Luxembourg ...

and are now in the

Musée d'Orsay The Musée d'Orsay ( , , ) () is a museum in Paris, France, on the Rive Gauche, Left Bank of the Seine. It is housed in the former Gare d'Orsay, a Beaux-Arts architecture, Beaux-Arts railway station built from 1898 to 1900. The museum holds mai ...

. His more important monuments are those to Admiral Courbet (1890) at

Abbeville Abbeville (; ; ) is a commune in the Somme department and in Hauts-de-France region in northern France. It is the of one of the arrondissements of Somme. Located on the river Somme, it was the capital of Ponthieu. Geography Location A ...

and the famous

Joan of Arc Joan of Arc ( ; ; – 30 May 1431) is a patron saint of France, honored as a defender of the French nation for her role in the siege of Orléans and her insistence on the Coronation of the French monarch, coronation of Charles VII o ...

. Other works include ''Eve'' (1880), ''Diana'' (1882 and 1891), ''Woman and Peacock'' (a. k. a. '' Juno and The Peacock''), and ''The Poet'', astride his

Pegasus Pegasus (; ) is a winged horse in Greek mythology, usually depicted as a white stallion. He was sired by Poseidon, in his role as horse-god, and foaled by the Gorgon Medusa. Pegasus was the brother of Chrysaor, both born from Medusa's blood w ...

spreading wings for flight. He sculpted ''The Dancer'', based on

Cléo de Mérode Cléopâtre-Diane de Mérode (27 September 1875 – 17 October 1966) was a French dancer of the Belle Époque. She has been referred to as the "first real celebrity icon" and the "first modern celebrity". She was also the first woman whose photog ...

which today is also in the

. In 1870 he helped create the snow sculpture, '' La statue de la Résistance''. To these works should be added his monuments to Cardinal Lavigerie and to ''

Marquis de Lafayette Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier de La Fayette, Marquis de La Fayette (; 6 September 1757 – 20 May 1834), known in the United States as Lafayette (), was a French military officer and politician who volunteered to join the Conti ...

'' (in Washington, DC), and his statues of

Alphonse de Lamartine Alphonse Marie Louis de Prat de Lamartine (; 21 October 179028 February 1869) was a French author, poet, and statesman. Initially a moderate royalist, he became one of the leading critics of the July Monarchy of Louis-Philippe, aligning more w ...

(1876) and St Vincent de Paul (1879), as well as the ''Honoré de Balzac'', which he executed for the Société des gens de lettres on their rejection of that by

Auguste Rodin François Auguste René Rodin (; ; 12 November 184017 November 1917) was a French sculptor generally considered the founder of modern sculpture. He was schooled traditionally and took a craftsman-like approach to his work. Rodin possessed a u ...

; and the busts of

Carolus-Duran Charles Auguste Émile Durand, known as Carolus-Duran (4 July 1837 – 17 February 1917), was a French painter and art instructor. He is noted for his stylish depictions of members of Upper class, high society in French Third Republic, Third Rep ...

and

Ernest Alexandre Honoré Coquelin Ernest Alexandre Honoré Coquelin (16May 18488February 1909) was a French actor. Also called Coquelin Cadet, to distinguish him from his brother, he was born at Boulogne, and entered the Conservatoire in 1864. He graduated with the first pri ...

(1896). Falguière was a painter as well as a sculptor. His ''Wrestlers'' (1875) and ''Fan and Dagger'' (1882; a defiant Spanish woman) were in the Luxembourg, and other pictures of importance are ''The Beheading of St John the Baptist'' (1877), ''The Sphinx'' (1883), ''Acis and Galatea'' (1885), ''Old Woman and Child'' (1886) and ''In the Bull Slaughter-House''. Falguière also taught; among his students were Francis Edwin Elwell, Ernest Henri Dubois,

Julien Caussé Julien Caussé (birth name Jules Caussé) was a prolific French sculptor during the Art Nouveau period of the late 19th and early 20th centuries who specialized in small figures. Background and career Jules Caussé was born in Bourges, Bourges ...

, Laurent Marqueste, Henri Crenier and Théophile Barrau. Falguière became a member of the

Institut de France The ; ) is a French learned society, grouping five , including the . It was established in 1795 at the direction of the National Convention. Located on the Quai de Conti in the 6th arrondissement of Paris, the institute manages approximately ...

(

Académie des Beaux-Arts The (; ) is a French learned society based in Paris. It is one of the five academies of the . The current president of the academy (2021) is Alain-Charles Perrot, a French architect. Background The academy was created in 1816 in Paris as a me ...

) in 1882. Falguière died in Paris in 1900 and was interred there in the

Père Lachaise Cemetery Père Lachaise Cemetery (, , formerly , ) is the largest cemetery in Paris, France, at . With more than 3.5 million visitors annually, it is the most visited necropolis in the world. Buried at Père Lachaise are many famous figures in the ...

, where his monument is by his pupil Marqueste.

Notes

External links

* * *
Insecula: index to pages displaying Falguière's work
(it may be necessary to close an advertising window to view this page) * {{DEFAULTSORT:Falguiere, Alexandre 1831 births 1900 deaths Artists from Toulouse Painters from Occitania (administrative region) Academic art Burials at Père Lachaise Cemetery 19th-century French painters French male painters Prix de Rome for sculpture École des Beaux-Arts alumni Members of the Académie des beaux-arts Officers of the Legion of Honour 19th-century French sculptors French male sculptors 19th-century French male artists

Biography

See also

Notes

External links