84 - Aimé-Jules Dalou (1838–1902)

Aimé-Jules Dalou (1838–1902) The Punishments Model created around 1885 Bronze high relief with a light brown patina tinged with green Signed “DALOU” at the bottom left Bears the foundry mark “Susse Frs Edts Paris” Bears a cartouche inscribed “IT IS A VENGEFUL SPIRIT THAT PASSES BY / DRIVING THE DEMONS BEFORE HIM / Victor Hugo” H. 26 x W. 19 cm, in a fruitwood frame H. 36 x W. 28.5 cm Aimé-Jules Dalou created the model for this relief to illustrate Victor Hugo’s *Les Châtiments*, a collection of satirical poems condemning Napoleon III’s coup d’état in 1851, published in Belgium. Beyond their friendship, the two artists—both forced into exile—shared the same political views. The influence of Hugo’s work can be seen in several of Dalou’s sculptures. Félix Bracquemont created an etching based on Dalou’s relief for the frontispiece of the French edition of the collection, which was ultimately never published. We know of two plaster reliefs and one bronze version by the sculptor, which was presented at the 1890 Salon. For financial reasons, Dalou agreed to have his model produced and signed a contract with the Susse Foundry in 1899 for three versions. The first version (15 x 11 cm) consists of a single copy preserved at the Musée d’Orsay. The majority of the casts produced by Susse were made posthumously in version No. 3 (33 x 23 cm). Our copy, which is rarer, corresponds to version No. 2 (26 x 19 cm), which the publisher quickly discontinued. Related works: -Aimé-Jules Dalou, *Les Châtiments*, c. 1885, plaster bas-relief, H. 34.5 x W. 24.2 cm, Paris, Musée d’Orsay, inv. RF 2464: -Aimé-Jules Dalou, *Les Châtiments* No. 3, master model, bronze relief, H. 15.7 x W. 11.6 cm, Paris, Musée d’Orsay, inv. 4337. Related literature: -Amélie Simier, Jules Dalou, the Sculptor of the Republic, exhibition catalog Paris, Petit Palais, April 18–July 13, 2013, Paris, Paris Musées, 2013, model listed as no. 69, pp. 114–115.