Sculpture of St. Denis, Notre Dame, Paris
Auguste Mestral French
Not on view
Around 1853, the sculptor Geffroy-Dechaume commissioned Mestral to photograph a series of statues for the cathedral of Notre Dame during its renovation by Viollet-le-Duc. The results belie the commercial nature of the photographs, which are among Mestral's most beautiful productions. Here, St Denis, who was decapitated during his martyrdom, appears both magisterial and surreal as he confronts the viewer with his severed head.