196 - Paul DUBOIS (1829–1905)

Paul DUBOIS (1829–1905) Military Courage Bronze cast with a brown patina Cast by Barbedienne, marked “F. Barbedienne fondeur” H.: 52 cm Bibliography: F. Rionnet: *Les bronzes Barbedienne: The Work of a Dynasty of Founders*, model listed under cat. no. 693, fig. 148. Trained at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris, in the studio of sculptor Armand Toussaint, and later in Rome, Paul Dubois was part of the Neo-Florentine movement, characterized by inspiration drawn from Italian Renaissance sculpture. He became a member of the Academy of Fine Arts, which he headed in 1878. Among his students was Camille Claudel, whom he taught at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris. In 1873, he was appointed curator of the Musée du Luxembourg. Renowned for his monumental commissions, he received, notably, a commission from the Duke of Aumale for an equestrian statue of Constable Anne de Montmorency, intended for the Château de Chantilly. He also created the allegorical figures for the cenotaph of General Christophe Juchault de Lamoricière (1806–1865), unveiled in 1879 in Nantes Cathedral. “Military Courage” represents one of the four virtues associated with the general’s memory, alongside Faith, Charity, and Civil Courage. The plaster model, dated 1876, is housed at the Camille Claudel Museum; a preparatory drawing is also part of the Louvre’s collections. The term “Barbedienne cast” refers to the famous art foundry founded by Ferdinand Barbedienne (1810–1892). Beginning in 1838, his partnership with engineer Achille Collas fostered the development of mechanical processes for reproducing and scaling down sculptures, thereby contributing to the wider dissemination of works of art. The foundry collaborated with numerous renowned sculptors and played a key role in the rise of bronze sculpture in the 19th century. The presence of a Barbedienne cast of *Military Courage* thus attests to the dissemination of Paul Dubois’s composition beyond its original monumental context.