Artwork Page for Ornamental Scupture

Details / Information for Ornamental Scupture

Series Title: The New Paris Opera

Ornamental Scupture

c. 1865–72

Louis-Émile Durandelle

(French, 1839–1917)
publisher

Ducher et Cie., Editeurs

Culture
France, 19th century
Medium
albumen print from wet collodion negative
Measurements
Image: 28.1 x 38.1 cm (11 1/16 x 15 in.)
Credit Line
John L. Severance Fund 1990.116
Public Domain
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Location
230 Photography
Print
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Did You Know?

Louis-Émile Durandelle photographed this sculptural ornament for the new Paris opera house while still in the workshop; he blacked out the background in the negative.

Description

Napoleon III commissioned the opera house. It was adorned with lavishly decorated facades and surfaces inside and out, like this sculptural molding that topped doors in the building’s side galleries. The opera house became the setting for Gaston LeRoux’s 1910 novel The Phantom of the Opera, which inspired the 1976 musical and 2004 film.
A horizontal albumen print depicts a light-colored ornamental sculpture. Centered at the top, a stylized face with pointed ears and a textured headpiece gazes forward. Thick garlands of carved fruit and foliage drape toward the corners, connecting to vertical sections on our left and right overflowing with grapes, pinecones, and corn. Sharp shadows define the intricate textures and worn edges of the stone, framing a dark, rectangular void at the bottom.

Ornamental Scupture

c. 1865–72

Louis-Émile Durandelle, Ducher et Cie., Editeurs

(French, 1839–1917)
France, 19th century

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