Dying gladiator (3) The Wounded warrior by Pierre-Etienne Monnot

In the serie of sculptures representing dying gladiators, today is the 'Wounded Warrior, sculpted by the French sculptor Pierre-Etienne Monnot, and located in the Capitolini Museum in Rome.

This sculptor, although born in France (1657) spent all his life in Rome from the age of 10 until his death (in 1733).
He got his first sculpture lessons from his father who sculpted wood, then by Jean Dubois, and may have worked a little in Paris for some main sculptors on some projects launched by the King Louis XIV.
Once in Rome, he joined quickly a circle of French sculptors, who gradually would get an excellent reputation during the first part of the 18 century, and got many commissions, not only for Italian monuments & churches, but also for English aristocrats, for whom he sculpted tombs monuments, allegorical figures for chapels, and mythological pieces.
He also went to Kassel in 1714, where he sculpted several statues, busts and a masterpiece consisting of colored marble bas-reliefs in the Orangerie at the Karlsaue. 

Cupidon & Narcissus - Kassel

Apollo & Marsyas - Kassel

Regarding today's sculpture, the Wounded Warrior, the origin of it is a restoration. Many sculptors indeed were asked to restore statues or damaged antiquities. Monnot received a marble torso which used to be a 'Discobolus', a copy made from the original Myron sculpture.

But Monnot transformed that figure (a liberty used at the Baroque period) to make it as the Wounded Warrior, ''who supports himself on his arm as he sinks to the ground''.
It is the Pope Clement XII who offered that sculpture to the Capitoline Museum.
 

 

(This sculpture was seen last week in Rome by one of our regular reader from Paris, P., who kindly sent me a picture, together with a funny anecdote : the guide apparently did not liked when he tried to go at the back of the statue, to admire the other side, so here are 2 more pictures to help him!).

Together with this sculpture, today's bonus is the second marble sculpture at same Museum, showing one of the Niobide, also 'appreciated' by our reader!

Niobide - Capitoline Museum - Roma (photo P. from Paris)

Sources:
Wikipedia
Capitolini Museum

Oreste by Pierre-Charles Simart

Pierre-Charles Simart was a French sculptor, born in Troyes on 27 June 1806.
Many of his art pieces are located in Troyes, and Paris. For today's post, I will show you his Oreste.

A few extracts from his biography:
Pierre-Charles' father was a carpenter, and his father sent him very early (at 6 years old) to follow drawing classes. While helping his father between 13 and 16 yo, he sculpts inside the family house.

La main d'Oreste - photo by Michèle Fleury

At the age of 17, he got a monthly scholarship from his native town, to pursue sculpture classes in Paris.

At the age of 27, he already won the first Grand Prix de Rome, with the bas-relief  in plaster 'Le Vieillard et les enfants'.
Regarding 'our' Oreste, one is in marble, visible at the Art museum of Rouen (France).
 

Oreste réfugié à l’autel de Pallas

   There is also a similar sculpture in bronze, located Place St Nizier in Troyes (France).

Photo by Jacques.

This sculpture, and the myth, also inpired the French artists Pierre & Gilles. Their Oreste art piece, photograph below, was part of the exhibition entitled 'Heroes' organized by the Gallery Templon in Paris in 2014.
 

 

Other works from Pierre-Charles Simart include 'decors' for the Paris townhall such as 'Architecture' and 'Sculpture'. Last but not least, he sculpted during 6 years the tumb of Napoléon 1st in Paris' Invalides, including not only the famous statue itself, but also the 19 allegoric bas-reliefs.

He was an elected member of the Academie des Beaux-Arts in 1852.

He 'stupidly' died in Paris on 27 May 1857, reportedly falling from a public bus.

Sources:
Wikipedia
Jacques Schweitzer website about the fabulous city of Troyes