Louis-Philippe I, King of the French

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Louis-Philippe I, King of the French

Artist James Pradier (French, 1790-1852)

Place of OriginFrance

Date1833-1834

DimensionsH: 24 1/4 in. (61.6 cm); W: 15 in. (38.1 cm); Depth: 10 7/8 in. (27.6 cm)

MediumMarble

ClassificationSculpture

Credit LinePurchased with funds from the Libbey Endowment, Gift of Edward Drummond Libbey

Object number

1994.35

Not on View

Label TextLouis Philippe (1773–1850) became King of the French in 1830 after the overthrow of the Bourbon Monarchy in the July Revolution. Less than 20 years later, financial crisis and the increasingly repressive policies of his “July Monarchy” led to Louis Philippe’s abdication and exile on the eve of yet another revolution in 1848. James Pradier, an admirer of ancient art and a practitioner of the Neoclassical style, depicted the monarch nude in the manner of classical Greek and Roman statues of the gods. Pradier even left the eyes “blank”—many ancient sculptures appeared this way because originally the eyes were painted. The furrowed brow and taut neck muscles create a forceful impression of a man in tense, serious thought. Like the bust of Count Potocki by Thorvaldsen in this gallery, the hair is styled in the current fashion despite the sculpture’s reference to ancient art. Louis Philippe’s characteristic peak of hair and substantial mutton-chopped jowls led to him being caricatured as “La Poire” (the Pear) in the popular press.Published ReferencesStatues de chair: sculptures de James Pradier (1790-1852), exh. cat., Geneva, Musée d'art et d'histoire, Paris, Musée de Luxembourg, 1985-1986, p. 234, p. 394, no. 198.

Janson, H.W., 19th-Century Sculpture, New York, 1985, pp. 105-111.

Zapata, Janet, "Jewelry at the Toledo Museum of Art," Antiques, vol. 158, no. 4, Oct. 2000, p. 508, pl. V, p. 506 (col.).

Lapaire, Claude, James Pradier 1790-1852 et la sculpture francaise de la generation romantique: catalogue raisonné, Milan, 5 Continents, 2010, p. 274.