After Jean Antoine Houdon

After JEAN ANTOINE HOUDON (Versailles, 1741-Paris, 1828); second half of the 19th century.
"Voltaire".
Patinated bronze.
Presents stamp of the Barbedienne Foundation.
Signed with seal of the founder Achille Collas.
Measurements: 23 x 11 x 16 cm.
This work follows the model of the sculpture that Houdon made the sculpture in 1778, shortly after Voltaire's triumphant return to Paris after years of self-imposed exile. The statue was commissioned by Voltaire's niece, Madame Denis, and the original marble version is at the Comédie Française in Paris.
Jean-Antoine Houdon was a French sculptor, a leading figure of neoclassicism in his country. He stood out in his portraits by the search for individual character, which brought him closer to pre-Romanticism. A disciple of Jean-Baptiste Pigalle and Lemoyne, in 1764 he moved to Rome to complete his training. He devoted himself mainly to portraits, beginning the series with one of Diderot, in terracotta, followed by those of Mirabeau, D'Alembert, Molière, Voltaire, Rousseau and Franklin. The latter suggested to him the idea of traveling to the United States to portray Washington. Houdon arrived on the American continent in 1785 and, in addition to several busts of the president, he created the statue currently on display in the Capitol. During the French Revolution, he painted the faces of Necker, Lafayette and Napoleon. Also noteworthy is his elegant Diana the Huntress (1776), in the classicist style.