Jean-Pierre Dantan

Born into a family of sculptors, Jean-Pierre Dantan followed his older brother Antoine Laurent Dantan (sometimes referred to as ‘Dantan the Elder’) as a student of François Joseph Bosio at the École des Beaux Artes in Paris in 1823.

Following his formal training, Dantan undertook a number of state commissions, most notably his portrait of the French architect and writer Philibert Delorme which stands on the façade of the Aile en Retour Mollien section of the Palais du Louvre. Despite this fairly traditional start to his career, Dantan quickly moved on to more ingenious works, becoming primarily known as a portraitist, specifically for his caricatures or portrait chargés. These humorous portraits were predominantly inspired by the Parisian worlds of art, theatre, and music, parodying key figures with skill and wit in equal measure.

Dantan’s fascination with the French world of entertainment continued to be prominent in his choice of subject, as seen in his lively portrait of Hector Berlioz (Musée Carnavalet inv. no. S188). However, Dantan’s portraits and caricatures were not limited to French subjects. Dantan lived in London for several months in 1833 and again in 1834, producing several pieces during his first stay including a spirited portrait of Samuel Rogers held at the National Portrait Gallery (inv. no. NPG 3888).

Whereas Dantan usually stayed within the realm of the arts for his French subjects, he seems to have been more willing to expand his repertoire across the Channel. The present lot depicts Lord Sefton, Lord Adolphus FitzClarence, Georges Humwell, and Lord Allen, in profile as they watch a performance of The Barber of Seville (as indicated on the program). The figures are represented in varying degrees of boredom, with two humorously shown midway through wearied yawns.

RELATED LITERATURE

E. Bénézit, Dictionnaire des Peintres, Sculpteurs, Dessinateurs et Graveurs, vol. 4, Paris, 1999, p. 238; J. Seligman, Figures of Fun: The Caricature- Statuettes of Jean-Pierre Dantan, London, 1957; P. Sorel, ‘Les Dantan de Musées Carnavalet, Portrait-charges sculptes de l’epoque romantique’’ in Gazette des beaux-artes, January, 1986, part 1, pp. 1-38, Feb 1986, part II; P. Sorel (ed.), Dantan Jeune: caricatures et portraits de la societe romatique, exh. cat. Musée Carnavalet, Paris, 1989