Peter-Francis Chenu English, active late 18th/ early 19th century

Although Chenu exhibited at the Royal Academy and the British Institution over a period of more than thirty years, from 1788 to 1822, his oeuvre is little known today.  The present bronze seated Hercules is, therefore, a fascinating addition to his known works.  Signed and dated 1819, this model must be related to Chenu's 1817 RA exhibit entitled Restoration of the Torso, presumably the famous antique Belvedere Torso upon which the body of Hercules is so obviously based.  In fact, Chenu's work on this subject dates back to his student years at the Academy schools when his work on the torso earned him the prestigious Gold Medal in 1786.  Gunnis records various monuments by Chenu which he describes as 'of unequal merit'.  The present bronze of Hercules, however, shows that Chenu was capable of strong modelling and a technically superior level of bronze casting.

RELATED LITERATURE
Gunnis, p.100