MERCIÉ, Antonin

Marius-Jean-Antonin (Antoine) Mercié was a French sculptor. He entered the École des Beaux Arts, Paris, and studied under Alexandre Falguière and François Jouffroy, and in 1868 gained the Grand Prix de Rome at the age of 23. His first great popular successes were the bronze David and Gloria Victis, which was shown and received the Medal of Honour of the Paris Salon. The bronze was subsequently placed in the Square Montholon.

Mercié was appointed Professor of Drawing and Sculpture at the École des Beaux Arts, and was elected a member of the Académie Française in 1891, after being awarded the biennial prize of the Institute of 800 in 1887. He was subsequently elected to grand officier of the Légion d’Honneur, and in 1913 became the president of the Société des Artistes Français.

Tombstones, busts, architectural models, and statues of horses and riders for clients all over the world completed the oeuvre of this artist.

David

The bronze David was one of Merci�’s most popular works. The sculptor introduced the plaster model of his life-size David to the Salon of 1872, the first to be held since the Franco-Prussian War, where it was well received. The Biblical hero is depicted naked with the head of Goliath at his feet like Donatello’s David. The figure’s turban, as well as his sword and the decoration around the plinth, reflect the Orientalist trend that was extremely popular in France at this time.

Numerous reproductions exist, most of which incorporate a loincloth that covers David’s genitalia but not his buttocks. The lifesize original is now in the Mus�e d’Orsay.

David

Gloria victis