List of works by James Pradier
[5] [6][7][8] [11] [12] [13] [16][17][18] [20][24] [26] [27] The other statues are Brest and Rouen by Jean-Pierre Cortot, Lyon and Marseille by Pierre Petitot and Bordeaux and Nantes by Louis-Denis Caillouette.
When Ferdinand-Philippe Duke of Orléans, the King's eldest son was killed in an accident in 1842, Louis-Philippe commissioned Pradier to take casts of Ferdinand-Philippe's head, hands and feet to ensure that any future sculptures would be true to his son's likeness and Pradier produced several works using these casts including a memorial bust, a monument to the Duke and a bronze medallion[30][31][32][33][34][35] Pradier's grandfather had been from the Gard region and apart from his work in Paris his friends in the French MIDI, particularly Nîmes, helped him secure commissions in that area.
A seated Jupiter represents the river Rhône, Latin "Rhodanus", one of whose arms rests of a mask of "tragedy" and from which water flows into the central basin.
The river Gardon, "Vardo" in Latin, a tributary of the Rhône, is symbolized by Neptune and his trident and his feet rest on an amphora from which water flows.
One represents the source known as "L’Eure" or "Ura" in Latin, which originates from a spring near Uzès and the other the "Fontaine de Nîmes" or "Namausa" in Latin, this spring used by the Romans in the early colony[38][39][40] [41] [43] [44] Pradier's monument to Louis IX was inaugurated in 1849 and originally comprised a bronze depiction of the king on a pedestal but in 1896 it was converted into a public fountain and dolphins and basins were added to the pedestal.
Louis IX King of France was one of the promoters of the Crusades in the Holy Land in the 13th century and to give the crusaders a convenient departure point when sailing to the Middle East he ordered the construction of the fortified city of Aigues-Mortes, on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea [45] [2][46][47][48] This work is also known under title "Un fils de Niobé".
The Louvre hold a marble version of a plaster composition which Pradier carried out whilst in Rome in December 1817 and subsequently sent to the École des Beaux-arts in Paris.
The original model in plaster and wax and called "Penserosa" -(the thoughtful one) is held by the Paris Musée des Arts décoratifs.
"Sapho" was on display at the Salon in 1852 when the sculptor died suddenly; the work was then covered with a black veil and the artist posthumously awarded the medal of honour.
This was shown at the 1848 Paris Salon and a bronze version of the work is held in Osborne House having been acquired by Queen Victoria in 1853.
A commission for the bust of Augustin-Pyramus de Candolle followed in 1845 and Pradier captured interest by producing a cylindrical pedestal for this with remarkable reliefs.
After Pradier's death the Musée de Geneve acquired several original plaster models and a huge number of his design drawings.
For a full description of the grave and details of the theft of three of the reliefs see "Étude :Le tombeau de Pradier au cimetière du Père-Lachaise" by Douglas Siler.
