Plaster Bust

Plaster bust representing Nicolas Coustou, sculptor of King Louis XIV. "Coustou by Coustou" the celebrity of the two Coustou brothers rivals that of their uncle Coysevox, with whom they had trained. Guillaume (1677-1746) was as skilled at practicing the art of the ceremonial bust as he was at delivering much more intimate images of his models. This is how he would represent his elder brother, Nicolas, (1658-1733) portrait of an artist by another artist, who can be seen in the strictest intimacy of his studio, his collar open and wearing a turban tied on top of his head. The department of the Louvre Museum has the terracotta model of this bust, which was donated to the Museum of French Monuments by Guillaume-Nicolas Coustou (1758-1825), the sculptor's grandson.