Of Sound and Fury. Bourdelle sculptor and photographer

When he won the competition for this substantial commission in 1895, Antoine Bourdelle was thirty-four. Taking inspiration from Rodin, whose studio assistant he was at the time, he designed the work as a grouping of eloquent figures. In the course of seven years of exploration and studies, he developed a personal language that marked a turning point in his career and would soon feed into Héraklès archer (Herakles the Archer, 1906–1909) and Centaure mourant (Dying Centaur, 1911–1914). 

Before its official unveiling in Montauban on 14 September 1902, the monument had been exhibited in Paris during the spring of that year, at the prestigious Salon of the National Society for the Fine Arts. On show for all to see outside the Grand Palais, it stood out as a paragon of contemporary sculpture. At once much admired and the subject of radical differences of critical opinion at the time, this masterpiece remains by and large little known. Thus, this exhibition sets out to right a wrong by presenting studies and variations in clay, plaster and bronze based on the work, together with 130 photographs. Those photographs of the work taken by Bourdelle at the time not only provide documentary evidence but also bear witness to a major creative process.

For the most part never shown before, these works reveal the stunning creative profuseness of an artist who was both sculptor and photographer.

The finished work is also the focus of Les Combattants, a video commissioned from contemporary artist Olivier Dollinger. Offering a contemporary take on the Montalban group, Olivier Dollinger proposes a poetic approach to the monument. He filmed it at night, to capture its dark dimension and get as close as possible to its expressionist deployment. Discover the teaser right here.

Exhibition conceived by the Musée Bourdelle, in partnership with the Musée Ingres in Montauban, where it was held from June 23 to October 9, 2016.

Curators 
Chloë Théault, curator in charge of collections and photography at the musée Bourdelle
Colin Lemoine, in charge of the sculpture collection at the musée Bourdelle

General commissioner
Florence Viguier-Dutheil, head curator, head of the Ingres museum in Montauban
Amélie Simier, head curator, head of the Bourdelle and Zadkine museums

Exhibition catalog
De bruit et de fureur. Bourdelle sculpteur et photographe
Texts by Damarice Amao, Anne Cartier-Bresson, Colin Lemoine, Antoinette Le Normand-Romain, Amélie Simier, Chloë Théault, Florence Viguier-Dutheil
Edited by Chloë Théault
Editions Le Passage
Link to publisher's website

Catalogue de l'exposition

De bruit et de fureur

Consulter le catalogue