Prosper d'Épinay
Charles Adrien Prosper Caïez d'Épinay (13 July 1836 – 23 September 1914) was a French sculptor and
Early life
d'Épinay was born 13 July 1836 in
Career
In 1857, he decided to pursue a career in art and settled permanently in Paris; studying sculpture in the studios of
His first success came in 1864, in London, where he presented a caricature of
After many years of shuttling between London, Paris and Rome, he decided to settle in London and made connections among the English aristocracy, but remained close to people with Parisian connections as well; especially the group centered on the
His most famous work is probably a polychrome statue of Joan of Arc (Jeanne d’Arc au Sacre) which he exhibited at the Salon in 1902. Seven years later, one of his patrons offered the statue to Reims Cathedral, on the occasion of her beatification. It was placed in the apse of the chapel where Joan is believed to have been holding up during the coronation of Charles VII.[3]
Personal life
In 1869 he was married, in Paris, to Claire Mottet de La Fontaine (1844–1936), the daughter of Adolphe Mottet de La Fontaine (1795-1884), a Captain in the service of the Nizam of Hyderabad, Nasir-ud-Daulah, who was a son of Baron Benoît Mottet de La Fontaine. Her mother, Marie Élisabeth de Warren (1814-1893), was a painter and the daughter of Count Jean Baptiste François Joseph de Warren. She and her parents were born in India.[4] Together, they were the parents of several children, including:
- Georges d'Épinay (1876–-1950), who married Louise Lejéas, a daughter of René Lejéas, in 1900.
He died at his home in
Gallery
References
- ^ La Nouvelle revue, 1887/11-12 (A9, T49), p.835.
- ^ C.-E. Curinier (dir.), Dictionnaire national des contemporains : contenant les notices des membres de l'Institut de France, du gouvernement et du parlement français, de l'Académie de médecine…, Paris : Office général d'éd. de librairie et d'impr., 1899-1919, p. 189.
- ^ Statue (grandeur nature) : Jehanne au sacre, sur cathedrale-reims.culture.fr.
- ^ Alix Laincel, Les peintres de la Femme, 1888, p. 234.
Further reading
- Patricia Roux-Foujols, Prosper d’Épinay. Un sculpteur mauricien à la cour des princes, L'Amicale Ile Maurice-France, 1996 ISBN 9990336024.
- Allister Macmillan, Mauritius Illustrated Historical and Descriptive, Commercial and Industrial…, Londres, W.H. et L.Collingridge, 1914.
External links
- « Prosper d'Épinay » @ ArtRenewal
- « Prosper d’Épinay » @ Potomitan
- Généalogie de Prosper d’Épinay @ Roglo
- Works by d'Épinay @ ArtNet (including the "Golden Belt")