Antoine Étex (March 20, 1808

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...

July 14, 1888 Chaville) was a French

sculptor Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

, painter and architect.

Biography

He first exhibited in the

Paris Salon The Salon (french: Salon), or rarely Paris Salon (French: ''Salon de Paris'' ), beginning in 1667 was the official art exhibition of the Académie des Beaux-Arts in Paris. Between 1748 and 1890 it was arguably the greatest annual or biennial ar ...

of 1833, his work including a reproduction in marble of his ''Death of Hyacinthus'', and the plaster cast of his ''

Cain and His Race Cursed By God ''Cain and His Race Cursed By God''( French:{{lang, fr, Caïn et sa race maudits de Dieu) is an 1833-1839 marble sculpture by Antoine Étex, produced after an initial version in plaster, produced in Rome between 1831 and 1832, now in the Saint-Lo ...

''.

Adolphe Thiers Marie Joseph Louis Adolphe Thiers ( , ; 15 April 17973 September 1877) was a French statesman and historian. He was the second elected President of France and first President of the French Third Republic. Thiers was a key figure in the July Rev ...

, who was at this time minister of public works, now commissioned him to execute the two groups of ''Peace'' and ''War'', flanking the arch on the east facade of the

Arc de Triomphe The Arc de Triomphe de l'Étoile (, , ; ) is one of the most famous monuments in Paris, France, standing at the western end of the Champs-Élysées at the centre of Place Charles de Gaulle, formerly named Place de l'Étoile—the ''étoile'' ...

. This last, which established his reputation, he reproduced in marble in the Paris Salon of 1839. The French capital contains numerous examples of the sculptural works of Étex, which included mythological and religious subjects besides a great number of portraits. Among the best known of his architectural productions is Étex's tomb of

Théodore Géricault Jean-Louis André Théodore Géricault (; 26 September 1791 – 26 January 1824) was a French Painting, painter and Lithography, lithographer, whose best-known painting is ''The Raft of the Medusa''. Although he died young, he was one of the pi ...

Père Lachaise Cemetery Père Lachaise Cemetery (french: Cimetière du Père-Lachaise ; formerly , "East Cemetery") is the largest cemetery in Paris, France (). With more than 3.5 million visitors annually, it is the most visited necropolis in the world. Notable figure ...

, which includes a bronze figure of the painter, and a low-relief version the painter's controversial ''

Raft of the Medusa ''The Raft of the Medusa'' (french: Le Radeau de la Méduse ) – originally titled ''Scène de Naufrage'' (''Shipwreck Scene'') – is an oil painting of 1818–19 by the French Romantic painter and lithographer Théodore Géricault (1791� ...

'' on a front panel. Étex's paintings include the subjects of

Eurydice Eurydice (; Ancient Greek: Εὐρυδίκη 'wide justice') was a character in Greek mythology and the Auloniad wife of Orpheus, who tried to bring her back from the dead with his enchanting music. Etymology Several meanings for the na ...

and the martyrdom of

Saint Sebastian Saint Sebastian (in Latin: ''Sebastianus''; Narbo, Gallia Narbonensis, Roman Empire c. AD 255 – Rome, Italia, Roman Empire c. AD 288) was an early Christian saint and martyr. According to traditional belief, he was killed during the Diocle ...

, and he also wrote a number of essays on subjects connected with the arts. The last year of his life was spent at

Nice Nice ( , ; Niçard: , classical norm, or , nonstandard, ; it, Nizza ; lij, Nissa; grc, Νίκαια; la, Nicaea) is the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative ...

, and he died at Chaville,

Seine-et-Oise Seine-et-Oise () was the former department of France encompassing the western, northern and southern parts of the metropolitan area of Paris. He was buried in the

Cimetière du Montparnasse Montparnasse Cemetery (french: link=no, Cimetière du Montparnasse) is a cemetery in the Montparnasse quarter of Paris, in the city's 14th arrondissement. The cemetery is roughly 47 acres and is the second largest cemetery in Paris. The cemetery ...

in Paris.

Works

* ''

Sainte-Geneviève Saint Genevieve or Sainte-Geneviève may refer to: * Saint Genevieve (419/422–512), the patron of Paris * Saint Geneviève de Loqueffret (10th century), a local saint from Loqueffret, Brittany Buildings * Bibliothèque Sainte-Geneviève, a lib ...

'', marble, 1830, Clamecy, collégiale Saint-Martin * '' Caïn et sa race maudits de Dieu'', marble, (1832–1839), Lyon, musée des Beaux-Arts * ''La Résistance de 1814'', stone, (1833–1837), Paris,

arc de triomphe de l'Étoile The Arc de Triomphe de l'Étoile (, , ; ) is one of the most famous monuments in Paris, France, standing at the western end of the Champs-Élysées at the centre of Place Charles de Gaulle, formerly named Place de l'Étoile—the ''étoile'' ...

, western façade * ''La Paix'', stone, (1833–1837), Paris, arc de triomphe de l'Étoile, western façade * ''Tombeau de Géricault'', Paris,

, its plaster model was at the 1841 Salon,

Rouen Rouen (, ; or ) is a city on the River Seine in northern France. It is the prefecture of the region of Normandy and the department of Seine-Maritime. Formerly one of the largest and most prosperous cities of medieval Europe, the population ...

, Musée des Beaux-Arts * ''Portrait de Léon Pelet'', bust, marble, 1848, Paris,

musée du Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is the world's most-visited museum, and an historic landmark in Paris, France. It is the home of some of the best-known works of art, including the ''Mona Lisa'' and the ''Venus de Milo''. A central l ...

Cartelfr.louvre.fr
/ref> * ''Portrait du baron Dufour, maire de Metz (1769–1842)'', medal, marble, 1845,

Metz Metz ( , , lat, Divodurum Mediomatricorum, then ) is a city in northeast France located at the confluence of the Moselle and the Seille rivers. Metz is the prefecture of the Moselle department and the seat of the parliament of the Grand ...

, Grand salon de l'Hôtel de Ville * ''Médaillon du poète

Auguste Brizeux Julien Auguste Pélage Brizeux (12 September 1803 – 3 May 1858) was a French poet. He was said to belong to a family of Ireland, Irish origin, long settled in Brittany. He was educated for the law, but in 1827 he produced at the Théâtre Franç ...

'' (1803–1858) at the cemetery of Carnel in

Lorient Lorient (; ) is a town ('' commune'') and seaport in the Morbihan department of Brittany in western France. History Prehistory and classical antiquity Beginning around 3000 BC, settlements in the area of Lorient are attested by the presen ...

; medal, marble, 1858

Gallery

Image:Perelachaise-Gericault-p1000405.jpg, Étex's tomb of

Image:Perelachaise-Gericault-p1000404.jpg, Géricault's tomb, showing front panel Image:Paris Arc de Triomphe 02.jpg, ''Peace'', east facade of the

Image:Paris Arc de Triomphe 03.jpg, ''The Resistance'', east facade of the

References

* PE Mangeant, ''Antoine Étex, peintre, sculpteur et architecte, 1808-1888'' (Paris, 1894).

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Etex, Antoine 1808 births 1888 deaths École des Beaux-Arts alumni Burials at Montparnasse Cemetery 19th-century French architects 19th-century French painters French male painters Painters from Paris 19th-century French sculptors French male sculptors 19th-century French male artists