Alphonse-Amédée CORDONNIER (1848-1930) Ferdinand DUTERT (184 - Lot 162

Lot n° 162
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20000 - 40000 EUR
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Result : 70 840EUR
Alphonse-Amédée CORDONNIER (1848-1930) Ferdinand DUTERT (184 - Lot 162
Alphonse-Amédée CORDONNIER (1848-1930) Ferdinand DUTERT (1845-1906) Allegory of electricity Exceptional bronze, iron and cast-iron monumental staircase banister starter; the welcome in the form of a large scrolled escutcheon coat of arms centered with the monogram "RF" for République française and surmounted by a star. This is followed by wide crosses with acanthus foliage and spires centered on poppy rosettes, connecting to a fluted column with asparagus and a ring of interlacing supporting a statue allegorizing the Electricity Fairy in the form of a young woman standing on clouds and brandishing lightning bolts (originally a bouquet of lights) with her left hand, signed "A. Cordonnier" for Alphonse-André. Cordonnier" for Alphonse-Amédée Cordonnier (1848-1930) and dated 1889. The ensemble is presented on a wooden base in place of masonry. Height of sculpture 215 cm Overall height 395 cm Length 180 cm This exceptional, monumental ensemble was installed in the Grand vestibule of the Palais des Machines at the 1889 Universal Exhibition in Paris. The Palais was designed by architect Ferdinand Dutert in collaboration with three engineers, Victor Contamin, Jules Charton and Eugène-Vincent Pierron. The Grande Galerie des Machines stretched along the Avenue de La Motte-Picquet and occupied the entire width of the Champ-de-Mars, with impressive dimensions: 420 meters long, 110 wide and 48 high. The covered surface area reached 61,335 square meters, and the total metal mass of the structure, designed by Cail and Fives-Lille, was 11,300,000 kilograms of iron. A true symbol of French industry and engineering, and of the technological advances of the time, the Palais des Machines featured five adjoining galleries. The structure consisted of a metal framework covered by a dome with a luminous cap, decorated on the ceiling with a rose window, stained-glass windows, pendentives and voussoirs. Beneath this dome was the double flight of the main staircase leading to the side galleries on the second floor. The staircase, designed in a very lush style, was made of iron with wooden treads. It extended into the Grand Entrance Hall. The statues' pedestals were extremely rich, executed in wrought iron and gilded bronze by Monsieur Maison, a builder from Les Riceys (Aube), based on designs by Dutert. The ramp was punctuated by two monumental bronze figures, one created by the sculptor Barthélémy, the other by Cordonnier, the latter holding a bundle of electric lamps, now replaced by lightning bolts; known from engravings of the period, it is the symbol of a France at the cutting edge of the technologies of the time, and of a France turned towards the great innovations of the last years of the 19th century. Cordonnier Alphonse-Amédée (February 2, 1848, La Madeleine-lez-Lille - October 28, 1930, Paris) was a French sculptor who studied at the École Académique in Lille and the Beaux-Arts in Paris, where he was a pupil of Dumont and Thomas. He visited Rome twice. During his first stay (1873-1875), he sent two plaster sculptures to the Paris Salon. In 1877, he won the first Grand Prix for sculpture and returned to Rome from 1878 to 1881. Cordonnier tackled subjects linked to popular life and work. He received numerous commissions, including a bronze group of Electricity for the façade of the Galerie des Machines in Paris, statues and groups for the Sorbonne, the Hôtel de Ville, the Grand Palais and the Tours town hall, as well as various monuments in Lille (notably an allegory of Music for the façade of the Lille opera house) and Roubaix. He also designed a stone group, Maternité, now on display in the Square Adolphe-Chérioux in Paris's 15th arrondissement. Alphonse-Amédée Cordonnier was named Rosati d'honneur in 1895, chevalier de la Légion d'honneur in July 1888 and promoted to Officer of the same order in July 1903. Today, some of his works are held in the collections of the museums of Lille (Un torero), Tourcoing (Charmeuse, Le Jour et la Nuit) and Château-Thierry (Le Printemps). Bibliography: - J. P. Hindre "Aspects de l'architecture au XIXe" in Exposition universelle de 1889. Le Palais des machines, architecte M. F. Dutert : notice sur l'édifice et sur la marche des travaux, by Eugène Hénard, Librairies-imprimeries réunies, Paris, 1891 - L'Exposition universelle de 1889: grand ouvrage illustré, historique, encyclopédique, descriptif, Monod Émile, 1890, p. 262 - Alphand Adolphe, Exposition Universelle Internationale de 1889. Monographie : palais, jardins, constructions diverses, installations générales, Paris, J. Rothschild éditeur, 1892-1895 - Marie-Laure Crosnier-Leconte, "La galerie des Machines" en 1889 La Tour Eiffel et L'Exposition Universelle, Musée d'Orsay, May 16 -August 15, 1989, Paris, Éditions de la Réunion des Musées Nationa
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