Martha Mohamed

The Innovative Sculpture of Pierre Puget

May 11, 2015

Art 107
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Instructor: Professor Catherine Turrill

The Innovative Sculpture of Pierre Puget

In Seventeenth Century France the style of art leaned toward the classical. There was a

rigid set of rules and procedures to follow that were taught by the Royal Academy of Painting

and Sculpture. Artists attending the academy had to learn how to create art in this so called

French Classical style to be considered good; and more importantly to be accepted as an artist in

France and to make a living. These rules included learning from antiquity by copying; taking

from nature only the most beautiful, and idealizing it; also, painting the most noble of form and

subject with decorum. Furthermore, at all costs, artists must observe proportion, perspective,

composition, form and outline. In addition, they were not allowed freedom in the suggestion of

time, place or action, except for the moments before or after a depicted event.1 Charles Lebrun,

head of the Academy wrote a book with instructions and sketches on how to create emotion and

facial expression that must be followed exactly. Consequently, this led to some very formal and

stiff artwork even in subjects and stories that were meant to be compelling and emotional.

Students who learned to make art in this fashion were restricted and stifled. They became

competent, in style and technique, but the Academy produced artists as if they were products of a

factory. They were not encouraged to find their voice, or to experiment and play with all forms

of media and styles, as we art students are today. So, naturally they could produce nice art, but

not much of it stood out from the crowd. Those artists who did, did so by breaking the strict rules

1
Anthony Blunt, Art & Architecture in France 1500 to 1700 (London: Penguin Books, 1981) 345.
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they had been ingrained in them at the academy, and by the taste of patrons in France.2

However, in the late Seventeenth Century the tide began to turn in France. Artists that

went to Italy for training began to learn a different way to create art. This fresh new style began

to creep into to France, as artists visited, trained and saw Italian artwork, and returned home to

share it with their countrymen.. This style, now called Baroque, was free, dynamic, theatrical and

colorful. It asserted a sense of grandeur and excitement. Yet, it was full of detail, and clarity. It

was meant to tell a story, so the viewer could understand the emotion and the action and relate to

it. This style permeated all areas of the arts; painting, sculpture, architecture and even literature

and music.

In this essay, I intend to show that although Pierre Puget (1620-1694), trained in Italy,

and was a Baroque painter and sculptor, he was a master at blending Italian Baroque and

Classicism, which resulted in a new style, now called French Baroque. It took an intelligent and

very talented artist to do such a thing. Furthermore, he was a brave man to take such a chance

when creating his sculptures for the French court. He knew the conservative style that was being

practiced at Versailles, and favored by the king, and indeed forced by Lebrun and Colbert. But

he knew how to blend style with content. He also knew that the theme of the gardens at

Versailles was Greek mythology, and he chose his subject well. Two of Pugets statues were

accepted and installed at Versailles; the subject of the statues was Greek Mythology with a story

to tell, and a lesson to teach. A popular theme in Baroque art, as well as, Greek mythology.

In 1671, The Milo of Crotona, (Paris, Louvre; 1670-1682), (Fig.1) was accepted at

Versailles by the King. This statue is the Greek Myth in which Milo, a victorious and courageous

wrestler is attacked by wild beasts while attempting to destroy a tree trunk. Pugets statue depicts

Milo attempting to free his hand while being bitten on the buttocks by a lion. The statue is a

2
Ibid. 346.
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perfect combination of the Baroque and Classicism. In the straining of the muscles, and the

intensity of emotion illustrated in Milos face, as well as, the high degree of violence depicted in

the moment of action it is quite Baroque. It gives one a sense of danger and fear of the lion, and

pity for Milo. The tree trunk is quite natural looking, and Milos arm and head twist around in a

dramatic and theatrical pose, both features of which are also typically Baroque in style.

However, the action of the body is controlled and graceful in its positioning: there a two sets of

parallel lines which give it a sense of balance. This controlling balance of the body; legs and left

arm on one side, and the tree trunk, drapery and upper body on the other are classical in their

attitude. This blending of styles was calculated on Pugets part to insure his work would be

accepted by the King. He invented a new style, the French Baroque. 3 The story of Milo was well

known in the Seventeenth century, however, Puget conceived the Milo of Crotona statue from

his own imagination without the benefit of an example from antiquity which makes the

intelligence and creativity of the man truly inspiring, and virtually guaranteed his acceptance by

the French court.4 According to Dean Crittenden Walker Jr., with all the statues and artwork for

Versailles springing up like, plants, they must constantly be on the lookout for fresh art that

would fit in with the theme of the gardens, as well as, beautiful and inspiring.5

Pugets statue, Perseus Liberating Andromeda, (Paris, Louvre: 1678-1684), (Fig. 2) also

provides a picture of his French Baroque style. Although this statue is clearly Baroque it exhibits

a touch more French Classicism than the Milo of Crotona; and the King preferred it to the

former; possibly due to that aspect of its character.6 The faces of Perseus and Andromeda do not

exhibit much emotion. They appear to be in a dreamlike or dazed state, as Perseus frees

3
Blunt, Art & Architecture in France 1500 to 1700,376.
4
Guy E. Walton, The Sculptures of Pierre Puget (PhD diss., University of New York, 1968), 62.
5
Dean Crittenden Walker Jr., The Early Career of Francois Girardon, 1628-1686: The History of a Sculptor to Louis XIV During the
Superintendence of Jean-Baptiste Colbert (PhD diss., University of New York, 1982), 29.
6
Walton, The Sculptures of Pierre Puget, 212.
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Andromeda from her chains in preparation to carry her away to safety. However, its decidedly

Baroque features include the robust, dramatic nature of its form; the appealing Z-shaped pattern;

its balance, unity and gracefulness; also, the beautiful flowing drapery and the twisting, but

realistic and natural look of the tree. In addition, the putti at the bottom of the statue assisting

with the chains is a touch of mastery with its realistic rolls of baby fat, dimples and curls atop its

little head.

In contrast to Pierre Puget, we have Francois Girardon (1629-1715), who was one

of the primary sculptors at Versailles, unlike Puget who only had two works at Versailles with a

couple of other pieces that were never completed or delivered. Girardon was a sculptor to the

nth degree of French Classicism.

Malcomb Baker stated in his exhibition review, in The Burlington Magazine:

The marble sculptures are highly individual in their treatment of dramatic subjects
and the way in which these qualities are articulated in precise and concrete details
of carving and facture; these features distinguish Pugets works from the blander,
more consistent and uniform sculpture by artists such as Girardon, formulated
within an aesthetic framework establish by Le Brun. Pugets marbles have the
capacity to arrest the viewer in a way that less distinctive sculpture does not. 7

One of Girardons most memorable works is The Rape of Persephone, (Versailles, Garden of the

Chteau: 1677-1699), (Fig. 3). Although this sculpture is quite beautiful it lacks the spontaneity

of the Baroque. Girardon forces the trio into a framework of controlled action, form and line.

Also, the faces of the characters do not exhibit much emotion. Girardon went to Rome briefly to

refresh and refine his skills in antiquity, and returned and remained a student of the academy. He

did not absorb any of the Italian Baroque qualities being studied and created there; with this

statue he was competing with Gian Lorenzo Berninis (15981680) statue of the same subject.

The Rape of Prosperina, (Rome, Galleria Borghese: 1621-1622), (Fig. 4). However, Berninis

7
Malcomb Baker, Pierre Puget. Marseilles and Genoa, The Burlington Magazine, Vol. 137, No. 1106 (May, 1995), p. 336.
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work is a world apart from Girardon, as well as, quite a step away from Pugets blended French

Baroque. 8 Berninis statue is a breathtaking example of the Baroque from the look of fear on

Persephones face to the look of perverted joy on the face of Pluto. Also, the look of realism

Bernini attained with Plutos fingers digging into the flesh of Persephone, as well as the graceful,

but straining in opposite directions of the two characters created realism, drama and balance. In

addition, Bernini depicts a moment of action, lost to time in the portrayal of the flying hair of

Persephone. Pugets innovative French Baroque perfectly blended the wildness of Bernini, and

the restraint of Girardon.

Now we enter Antoine Coysevox (1640-1720). Coysevox was also a principal player of

artwork and statuary at Versailles, but his style varies greatly to that of Girardon and Puget. He is

proof that times were changing in France. The Baroque style was becoming more favored and

accepted in France. This change was instigated by Pugets original and innovative style.

However, it was carried into the new century by Antoine Coysevox.9 Coysevox trained at the

academy for at least six years, but he never had the success of Puget at blending French

Classicism and Italian Baroque, or even the success and talent of Girardon at sculpting in the

classic style. Although he trained at the academy, and several of his statuary at Versailles was

carved in the classical style; they are, heavy and lifeless, or copies of antiquity, according to

Blunt.10 He was a Baroque sculptor by nature and his work at Versailles excelled when he took

his freedom to break the rules. For example, his stucco relief, Triumph of Louis XIV, (Palace of

Versailles Salon de Guerra: 1678-1687), (Fig.5). This relief is a wonderful example of the

Baroque. According to Blunt, He makes no attempt to restrict the violence of the action in order

to conform to classical cannons. On the contrary, he emphasizes the movement across the surface

8
Blunt, Art & Architecture in France 1500 to 1700, 353-355.
9
Dean Crittenden Walker Jr., The Early Career of Francois Girardon, 1628-1686: The History of a Sculptor to Louis XIV During the
Superintendence of Jean-Baptiste Colbert (PhD diss., University of New York, 1968), 2.
10
Blunt, Art & Architecture in France 1500 to 1700, 357.
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of the relief and in depth into it.11 The Kings arm and leg, as well as, the leg and nose of the

horse project out into space. Furthermore, the drama and violence of the fallen men add to the

excitement of the piece.

Blunt also states that:

Girardon , who twice visited Rome, showed no sign of even being aware of the Baroque,
Coysevox, who as far as we know never went to Italy, comes closer in feeling to his
Roman contemporaries than any other Frenchman.12

Much has been written about Pierre Puget, and Francois Girardon. However, most of the

comprehensive works on Pierre Puget have been written in German and French, and there are not

as yet translations. It would be interesting to read these publications if they are ever published in

English. In particular a book written about Puget in German by Klaus Herding which I ran across

during my research. It was a huge book full of photographs of his artwork and would have been

perfect as a resource for this essay. But Guy E. Walton and Anthony Blunt provided the greatest

and most interesting accounts of the life and artwork of Puget and Girardon, as well as

Coysevox. There seems to have not been a book, dissertation or lengthy article written on

Coysevox. The consensus and most interesting aspects of these literary works were that Puget

was the most famous and the best artist whose work was installed at Versailles. They agree he

was innovative and intelligent to blend two completely different styles, and come out with a new

approach to art that was accepted in a rigid and formal French society and court. In addition, that

his fresh, new style was the forerunner of Baroque art being accepted and appreciated by the

French. Furthermore, they also agree that Girardon was an artist of the old school, and lacked the

ability, or at least the interest and motivation to create Baroque art. And that Coysevox was an

11
Ibid., 358.
12
Blunt, Art & Architecture in France 1500 to 1700, 358.
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artist who tried to conform to the strictures of Le Brun and Colbert, but could not continue to so

and when he broke free from their mold he created exciting and beautiful Baroque art.

In conclusion, I have discussed only three of the very important and talented artists who

contributed to the wonderful artwork at the Palace of Versailles. However, these three artists

varied greatly in the personalities, styles and careers. 13 Each one is a shining example of the three

styles that led to the change in attitude of and acceptance of the Italian Baroque in France and by

King Louis XIV himself, as well as, and the innovative, original and individual style of the

Master himself Pierre Puget. By the latter part of the century King Louis XIV was abandoning

his taste for French Classicism and began to nurture an appreciation for the Baroque. 14We can

credit this refreshing change at Versailles and indeed France in a big way to Puget because of his

ingenuity and intelligence at creating beautiful works of art that blended two very different

styles. We may also credit Coysevox for continuing the legacy of Puget; and enlarging upon it;

as well as, carrying the exciting, and refreshing style of the Baroque into the Eighteenth century.

13
Dean Crittenden Walker Jr., The Early Career of Francois Girardon, 1628-1686: The History of a Sculptor to Louis XIV During the
Superintendence of Jean-Baptiste Colbert (PhD diss., University of New York, 1982),1.
14
Blunt, Art & Architecture in France 1500 to 1700, 357.
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(Fig.1)
Pierre Puget, Milo of Crotona, (Paris, Louvre; 1670-1682)
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(Fig. 2)
Pierre Puget, Perseus Liberating Andromeda, (Paris, Louvre: 1678-1684)
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(Fig. 3)
Francois Girardon, The Rape of Persephone, (Versailles, Garden of the Chteau: 1677-1699),
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(Fig. 4)
Gian Lorenzo Bernini, The Rape of Prosperina, (Rome, Galleria Borghese: 1621-1622)
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(Fig.5)
Antoine Coysevox, Triumph of Louis XIV, (Palace of Versailles Salon de Guerra: 1678-1687)
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Bibliography

Baker, Malcomb. "Pierre Puget. Marseille and Genoa." The Burlington Magazine, Vol.
47, no.1106 (May, 1995): 336-358.

Blunt, Anthony. Art and architecture in France, 1500 to 1700. London: Penguin Books, 2015.

Walker, Dean Crittenden, Jr. The Early Career of Francois Girardon, 1628-1686: The History
of Sculptor to Louis XIV During the Superintendence of Jean-Baptiste Colbert. PhD
diss., University of New York, 1982.

Walton, Guy E. The Sculptures of Pierre Puget. PhD diss., University of New York, 1967.