Pierre-Jules Mêne
Encyclopedia
Pierre Jules Mêne, was a French
Sculptor and animalière. He is considered the pioneer of animal sculpture in the nineteenth-century.
Mêne produced a number of animal sculptures, mainly of domestic animals including horses, cows and bull
s, sheep and goats which were in vogue during the Second Empire
. He was one of a school of French animalières which also included Rosa Bonheur
, Pierre Louis Rouillard
, Antoine-Louis Barye
, Auguste Caïn
, and François Pompon
.
His work was first shown in London by Ernest Gambart
in 1849. Mêne specialized in small bronze
figures which explains why none of his works exist as public statuary. His work was a popular success with the bourgeois class and many editions of each sculpture were made, often to decorate an increasing number of private homes of the period. The quality of these works is high, comparable to Barye's. Mêne also seems to have enjoyed a longer period of success and celebrity than his contemporaries. He is considered to have been the lost-wax casting expert of his time, later surpassed only by Auguste Rodin
.
Because Mêne was so prolific and because so many editions of his works were made, his work is devalued in the current market, and forgeries of his works abound.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
Sculptor and animalière. He is considered the pioneer of animal sculpture in the nineteenth-century.
Mêne produced a number of animal sculptures, mainly of domestic animals including horses, cows and bull
Bull
Bull usually refers to an uncastrated adult male bovine.Bull may also refer to:-Entertainment:* Bull , an original show on the TNT Network* "Bull" , an episode of television series CSI: Crime Scene Investigation...
s, sheep and goats which were in vogue during the Second Empire
Second French Empire
The Second French Empire or French Empire was the Imperial Bonapartist regime of Napoleon III from 1852 to 1870, between the Second Republic and the Third Republic, in France.-Rule of Napoleon III:...
. He was one of a school of French animalières which also included Rosa Bonheur
Rosa Bonheur
Rosa Bonheur, born Marie-Rosalie Bonheur, was a French animalière, realist artist, and sculptor. As a painter she became famous primarily for two chief works: Ploughing in the Nivernais , which was first exhibited at the Salon of 1848, and is now in the Musée d’Orsay in Paris depicts a team...
, Pierre Louis Rouillard
Pierre Louis Rouillard
Pierre Louis Rouillard was a French sculptor known for his sculptures of animals. He was one of a "school of French animalières" which also included Pierre-Jules Mêne, Antoine-Louis Barye, Auguste Caïn and François Pompon...
, Antoine-Louis Barye
Antoine-Louis Barye
Antoine-Louis Barye was a French sculptor most famous for his work as an animalier, a sculptor of animals.-Biography:Born in Paris, Barye began his career as a goldsmith, like many sculptors of the Romantic Period...
, Auguste Caïn
Auguste Cain
Auguste Nicholas Caïn was a noted French sculptor in the Animaliers school, known for his portrayals of wild and domesticated animals....
, and François Pompon
François Pompon
François Pompon was a French sculptor and animalier.Born in Saulieu in Burgundy, he moved to Paris. Beginning in 1870 he studied under the noted animalier Pierre Louis Rouillard at the École nationale supérieure des arts décoratifs, and later worked as Auguste Rodin's assistant...
.
His work was first shown in London by Ernest Gambart
Ernest Gambart
Jean Joseph Ernest Theodore Gambart was a Belgian-born English art publisher and dealer who dominated the London art world in the middle of the nineteenth century.-Life and career:...
in 1849. Mêne specialized in small bronze
Bronze
Bronze is a metal alloy consisting primarily of copper, usually with tin as the main additive. It is hard and brittle, and it was particularly significant in antiquity, so much so that the Bronze Age was named after the metal...
figures which explains why none of his works exist as public statuary. His work was a popular success with the bourgeois class and many editions of each sculpture were made, often to decorate an increasing number of private homes of the period. The quality of these works is high, comparable to Barye's. Mêne also seems to have enjoyed a longer period of success and celebrity than his contemporaries. He is considered to have been the lost-wax casting expert of his time, later surpassed only by Auguste Rodin
Auguste Rodin
François-Auguste-René Rodin , known as Auguste Rodin , was a French sculptor. Although Rodin is generally considered the progenitor of modern sculpture, he did not set out to rebel against the past...
.
Because Mêne was so prolific and because so many editions of his works were made, his work is devalued in the current market, and forgeries of his works abound.