Jean Escoula
(Bagnères-de-Bigorre 1851-1911 Paris)

La Douleur

Exhibited in 1897
Marble
Signed J. Escoula
Height 52,5cm

This piece depicts a man with a tormented look on his face; “La Douleur”, grief, is a reflection of an emotion rather than a portrait of a man. The emotion is sculpted with powerful realism that reminds of Rodin. The skin has a wonderful plastic expression while the hair is reproduced in a more sketchy manner. The head of the man seems to emerge from the marble.
It suggests the non-finito of the sculpture and the organic evolution of the head from the block of stone it has been ‘liberated’ from. This was first done by Michelangelo and reintroduced by Rodin in the 19th century.

”La Douleur” shows the influence of the two great masters Escoula worked for. It has similarities with the head of one of the children in the famous group “Ugolin” by Carpeaux 1860) and is also related to the head of the young Pierre de Wissant in “ Bourgeois des Calais” (1885-1886) by Rodin.

Museums
Musée d'Orsay conserves the model in plaster
The Musée des Beaux-Arts de Valenciennes conserves a bronze cast

 

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