in
FRENCH ART.
and the Moliere Fountain, and his Victories at the Dome des In¬
valides; but this master possesses a certain grace and vivacity of
conception which still exercise their charm. Romanticism proper
played a very subordinate r61e in sculpture, where the decisive
part was undoubtedly that taken by realism. Three masters here stand
in the forefront: Fr. Rude. P. J. David d'Angers, and A. L. Barye.
Francois Rude (1784-1855) is the strongest nature of the three;
he invariably interests, even if he does not always satisfy us. Most
of his creations are tainted with something a little too unquiet, too
theatrical. Alongside his most expressive statue of Monge at Beaune
stands the restless Ney of the Place de l'Observatoire; his admirable
Cavaignac in Montparnasse Cemetery contrasts with the very
questionable figure of 'Napoleon awaking to immortality' at Fixin,
near Dijon. His most famous work is the 'March Out' on the Arc de
l'Etoile, which breathes the most fiery enthusiasm. The 'Fisher
Boy' and 'Joan of Arc' in the Louvre also deserve special remark.
His religious efforts are the least pleasing ('Baptism of Christ' at the
Madeleine). — Pierre Jean David d'Angers (1783-1856; thus named
from his native town, in contradistinction to the painter J. L. David),
unlike Rude, always retains a certain air of sober reality. He has
much in common with Rauch, and like him was fond of representing
generals in their uniforms and scholars and artists in ideal costume.
His busts and medallions occur by the hundred at Pere-Lachaise and
elsewhere, but it is impossible for us to share the enthusiasm with
which they were regarded by his contemporaries. The fame of the
great animal sculptor Antoine Louis Barye (1796-1875) has, on the
other hand, steadily increased. His larger works, such as the 'Lion
and Serpent' in the Garden of the Tuileries, have become popular
idols; and the Joriginal casts of his small bronzes fetch nearly their
weight in gold. His most successful followers are Fremiet (Jardin
des Plantes), Cam (Tuileries), and Gardet (Luxembourg, Chantilly,
etc.). By far the most eminent pupil of Rude is Jean Baptiste
Carpeaux'(1827-75), who died at a comparatively early age. His
'Triumph of Flora' at the Louvre, his 'Ugolino' at the Tuileries,
his vivacious busts, and, most of all, his group of 'Dancing' at the
Opera, which is inspired by a truly Bacchic gust of existence, and
his 'Quarters of the Globe' on the Fontaine de l'Observatoire assure
him one of the highest places in the history of modern sculpture.
(The last can Jbe best studied in the models at the Louvre, which
cleariy reveal the feverish energy of the hand that made them.)
With the great public the gentle maidens of his contemporary Chapu
(1833-91) are still more popular (tomb of Regnault in the Ecole
des Beaux-Arts). Among the pupils of David may be mentioned
Carrier-Belleuse, Cavelier, Maindron, and Aime Millet.
As we walk to-day through the Luxembourg Gallery, the public
parks, the cemeteries, and the exhibitions we find, it is true, much
academic conventionality, but there is also abundant evidence of a
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