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Louise Brongniart

1779, after a portrait of 1777
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 552
Among the numerous busts Houdon showed at the Salon of 1777 were a pair of Louise Brongniart and her brother Alexandre, both children of the distinguished Neoclassical architect Alexandre-Théodore Brongniart (1739–1813). The originals, now believed to be the terracottas in the Louvre, were among the sculptor's most popular creations and that of the five-year-old Louise, in particular, was reproduced well into the twentieth century. The Museum's marble, with a kerchief headdress elaborating the knotted scarf that binds Louise's hairdo in the original, is now thought to be one of numerous later variants. Also unique to this example is the ruffled fichu that emphasizes the little girl's simply truncated exposed chest.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Louise Brongniart
  • Artist: Jean Antoine Houdon (French, Versailles 1741–1828 Paris)
  • Date: 1779, after a portrait of 1777
  • Culture: French, Paris
  • Medium: Marble
  • Dimensions: Height: 20 in. (50.8 cm)
  • Classification: Sculpture
  • Credit Line: Bequest of Benjamin Altman, 1913
  • Object Number: 14.40.670
  • Curatorial Department: European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

More Artwork

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Winter, Jean Antoine Houdon French, Bronze, French, Paris
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1787
Armor of Infante Luis, Prince of Asturias (1707–1724), Jean Drouart French, Steel, gold, brass, silk, cotton, metallic yarn, paper, French, Paris
Armor of Infante Luis, Prince of Asturias (1707–1724)
Armorer Signature probably refers to Jean Drouart
dated 1712
Tomb Effigy Bust of Marie de France (1327-41), daughter of Charles IV of France and Jeanne d'Evreux, Jean de Liège Franco-Netherlandish, Marble with lead inlays, French
Tomb Effigy Bust of Marie de France (1327-41), daughter of Charles IV of France and Jeanne d'Evreux
Jean de Liège
ca. 1381
The Intoxication of Wine, Clodion (Claude Michel) French, Terracotta, French, Paris
The Intoxication of Wine
Clodion (Claude Michel)
ca. 1780–90
Sabine Houdon (1787–1836), Jean Antoine Houdon French, White marble on gray marble socle, French, Paris
Sabine Houdon (1787–1836)
Jean Antoine Houdon
1788

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