Jean-Antoine Houdon (1741-1828)

A statuette of L'Ecorché (The Skinned One) will soon join the Diana the Huntress and busts of Rousseau and Voltaire, the Parisian museum announced on Twitter. This is the first evidence of the collaboration between the great 18th-century sculptor and the no less famous bronzer Philippe Thomire.

Tête de négresse, a plaster sculpture of a woman's face by Jean-Antoine Houdon, has left the town of Soissons, France. It joins the Met Museum for "Fictions of Emancipation" which traces the history of slavery through Western sculpture. 

This is the only preparatory drawing for a work commissioned by the painter’s colleagues. It recalls the major artistic event of the time in France, the Salon.

Ader’s sale of the Biron collection was kicked off to a good start on January 29 by a portrait of the great French neoclassical sculptor, famed for his busts of important figures of the Enlightenment. The painting, on its original oval canvas, smashed its estimate to achieve €204,800.

Renée and Louis Biron's collection achieved a splendid €1 M, led by a fine portrait of Houdon by Restout and a rare group of silverware featuring regional pieces.

Painted when the artist was not yet famous, this seaside subject puts people at the center of the composition.

As this portrait attests, Léonard Limosin was an enameler to great statesmen and kings, starting with French King, Francis I (r.1515-1547).

Early painting blossomed, led by Jean-Baptiste Monnoyer (1636-1699) and Jean-Antoine Watteau (1684-1721).

This Jean-Léon Gérôme (1824-1904) painting found in an antique dealer’s collection recalls that, despite his academic reputation, he was a bold artist with no peer when it came to creating powerful images.

Recently rediscovered and authenticated by Olivier d'Agay, the aviator’s great-nephew, their secret will soon be revealed.