Statue, Large Bronze Bust Of Pierre Gourdel (rennes), Foundry E. Tassel. Sculpture

Magnificent bronze with a brown patina representing an imposing male bust. Our statue is signed in relief on the side of the base by the sculptor Pierre Gourdel and the founder E. Tassel and dated 1889. Dimensions: Height 71 cm, width at the shoulder 56 cm, depth 33 cm, base: 22.5 cm x 22.5 cm. Pierre Gourdel was the first cousin of Julien Gourdel (1804-1846), also a sculptor and close to him. He died in 1846. Pierre Gourdel was born on March 10, 1824, in Châteaugiron. He was admitted to the School of Painting, Sculpture, and Drawing in Rennes, where he received a medal in 1842. He left the school in 1843 to join his cousin Julien in Paris. After Julien's death in 1846, he returned to his former school in 1850 and won two more medals in 1851 and 1852. Two of his works were presented by the city of Rennes to Napoleon III on the occasion of his trip to Brittany in 1858. The latter awarded him a distinction (a tie pin with a diamond) and recommended him to the Prefect of Ille-et-Vilaine. In 1859, he was back in Paris and became a student of the sculptor Jean Marie Bonnassieux, a member of the Institut de France. He was initially a sculpture student. During this time, he received several public and private commissions. He exhibited regularly at the Salon des Artistes Français in Paris from 1861. His work was regularly recognized with 16 medals in art exhibitions. He was a member of the Société des Artistes Français and of the artistic societies of the West and of Rennes. He devoted a large part of his work to his native region and donated a significant portion to the Museum of Fine Arts in Rennes. He received a medal of honor in 1890. He fell seriously ill in 1891 and, paralyzed, was cared for by one of his sisters. He died on April 26, 1892, at the Hôtel-Dieu in Rennes and was buried in the same city at the Eastern Cemetery. E. Tassel: French founder, publisher, and manufacturer of bronze art. He was awarded a gold medal at the 1884 Exhibition of Industrial Arts and the 1885 Exhibition of Labor, a diploma of honor in Paris in 1886, a medal of Merit in 1887, and a silver medal at the 1889 Universal Exhibition. In 1893, Albert Susse mentioned him in his report on the Universal Exhibition among other prominent figures.