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ÉMILE-ANTOINE BOURDELLE AND THE MIDI: FRENCH SCULPTURE AND REGIONAL IDENTITY AT THE TURN OF THE TWENTIETH CENTURY by Colin Nelson-Dusek A dissertation submitted to the Faculty of the University of Delaware in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Art History Summer 2020 © 2020 Colin Nelson-Dusek All Rights Reserved ÉMILE-ANTOINE BOURDELLE AND THE MIDI: FRENCH SCULPTURE AND REGIONAL IDENTITY AT THE TURN OF THE TWENTIETH CENTURY by Colin Nelson-Dusek Approved: __________________________________________________________ Sandy Isenstadt, Ph.D. Chair of the Department of Art History Approved: __________________________________________________________ John A. Pelesko, Ph.D. Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences Approved: __________________________________________________________ Douglas J. Doren, Ph.D. Interim Vice Provost for Graduate and Professional Education and Dean of the Graduate College I certify that I have read this dissertation and that in my opinion it meets the academic and professional standard required by the University as a dissertation for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. Signed: __________________________________________________________ Nina Athanassoglou-Kallmyer, Ph.D. Professor in charge of dissertation I certify that I have read this dissertation and that in my opinion it meets the academic and professional standard required by the University as a dissertation for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. Signed: __________________________________________________________ Margaret Werth, Ph.D. Member of dissertation committee I certify that I have read this dissertation and that in my opinion it meets the academic and professional standard required by the University as a dissertation for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. Signed: __________________________________________________________ Lauren Hackworth Petersen, Ph.D. Member of dissertation committee I certify that I have read this dissertation and that in my opinion it meets the academic and professional standard required by the University as a dissertation for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. Signed: __________________________________________________________ June Hargrove, Ph.D. Member of dissertation committee ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to express my deepest gratitude to every person who has helped in writing this dissertation. Above all, my thanks to my advisor, Nina Athanassoglou- Kallmyer, for her unwavering support, patience, insight, and knowledge. I am grateful for the contributions and time of my advisory committee: June Hargrove, Lauren Hackworth Petersen, and Margaret Werth. A special thanks, in particular, to Margaret Werth, whose comments and review of my dissertation draft greatly improved the final product. I give my thanks for the support of the Art History Department faculty at the University of Delaware. Their instruction made me a better art historian and their decision to award me a dissertation development grant allowed me to undertake valuable research in France. I would also like to thank Linda Magner for her management of the department and her help whenever I had administrative inquiries. While in France, I was allowed access to archives at several museums that greatly benefited my research. I give my appreciation to the staff at the Musée Bourdelle in Paris (special thanks to Annie Barbera, Claire Boisserolles, Jérôme Godeau, and Colin Lemoine), the staff of the centre de documentation et la bibliothèque de la conservation at the Musée d’Orsay (special thanks to Denise Faïfe), and the staff of the Musée Ingres Bourdelle in Montauban (special thanks to Brigitte Alasia and Florence Viguier). iv I would like to thank the staff and faculty of the Art History Department of the University of St. Thomas in Saint Paul, Minnesota, with particular gratitude to Victoria Young for her support and advice. My heartfelt appreciation to the library staff at St. Thomas, who made my research away from Newark possible. Previous mentors that I would like to acknowledge are Mark Garrison, Dianne Sachko Macleod, and Faya Causey. My thanks to Eike Schmidt, who showed me a bronze cast of Bourdelle’s Doorknocker in the Form of Medusa’s Head at the Minneapolis Institute of Art in 2011, which led me to write this dissertation. Thanks also to Amanda Eggers, who provided much-needed editing of my dissertation draft. I would like to recognize all the graduate students in the University of Delaware’s Art History Department, and a truly special thanks to Hannah Segrave, Craig Lee, Emily Casey, Isabelle Havet, and Clay Zuba, all of whom offered friendship and advice when I needed it. Lastly, my deepest gratitude to all of my family and friends who have supported me through the long process of writing my dissertation. I give thanks to Bob and Liz for their encouragement and timely babysitting duties, and to my parents, Joe and Kay, for all of their love and support and for teaching me the importance of education and hard work. I give all of my heart to my two wonderful daughters, Thea and Lizzie, whose love and enthusiasm helped me to keep going and who taught me that anything worth doing takes time and patience. I dedicate this dissertation to Stephanie, my wife and best friend. The pages needed to express my full thanks, love, and appreciation of her are more than this work. v TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES ................................................................................................... viiii ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................. xix INTRODUCTION .......................................................................................................... 1 Chapter 1 COMING FROM THE MIDI ........................................................................... 15 Early Southern Influences: The Félibrige, Ingres, and Toulouse ..................... 23 Growing Up as an Artist between the Midi and Paris ...................................... 27 Bourdelle's Early Years in Paris ....................................................................... 35 Avenues to Symbolism ..................................................................................... 47 From Symbolism to the École romane.............................................................. 61 The Synthesis of Southern Heritage and École romane: The Beginning of Bourdelle's Classical Modernity ....................................................................... 70 FIGURES .......................................................................................................... 74 2 AN ERA OF REGIONALISM AND RISING NATIONALISM .................. 103 Monument to the Soldiers and Memorials after the Franco-Prussian War ..... 103 The Rise of Conservative Thought and Nationalism in Early 20th Century France .............................................................................................................. 112 Classicism in the Social-Political Context of Early 20th Century Paris .......... 118 Charles Maurras and Maurice Barrès: The right-wing revival of Hellenism and Classicism ....................................................................................................... 122 The Classical Revival in Art and Theory ........................................................ 127 vi Development of Classicism and Regionalism in Bourdelle's Art and Identity ............................................................................................................ 131 Herakles the Archer: Reception and Interpretations ....................................... 142 The Auguste Quercy Memorial and Its Impact on Bourdelle ......................... 154 FIGURES ........................................................................................................ 167 3 OLD GODS MADE NEW.............................................................................. 191 Théâtre des Champs-Elysées: History and Description .................................. 194 The State of the Arts in 1910s Paris................................................................ 208 Impact of Bourdelle's Colleagues and Fellow Artists ..................................... 212 The Grande Chaumière Lectures: Montauban, vernacular architecture, and the Latin past in the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées ............................................... 220 Antonin Perbosc and the Yearning for the Languedoc ................................... 231 The Death of the Last Centaur and the Dying Centaur .................................. 237 FIGURES ........................................................................................................ 250 CONCLUSION ........................................................................................................... 280 FIGURES ........................................................................................................ 286 REFERENCES ........................................................................................................... 292 Appendix A. ANTOINE BOURDELLE, "LE POÈME DU SCULPTEUR" ....................... 306 B. LE STATUAIRE BOURDELLE .................................................................... 311 C. THE CHANGING FACE OF GODS ............................................................. 327 D. SHELTER FOR THE FLOCK AT THE ROCK OF ANGLAR .................... 345 E. THE LAWS OF BAS-RELIEF/PENSIVE APOLLO AND THE MUSES.... 358 F. THE NATIVE EARTH: MONS-ALBANUS IN TARN-ET-GARONNE .... 369 vii LIST