Not currently on display at the V&A

La Gorgone (The Gorgon)

Bust
ca. 1865 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

The sculptor of this head, Adèle d'Affry, was born in Fribourg, Switzerland, but married Carlo Colonna, Duke of Castiglione, in Rome, and was generally referred to by contemporaries as the Duchesse Colonna. She adopted the male name 'Marcello' to demonstrate her seriousness and to distinguish her works from those of women amateurs. She was largely self-taught. She worked in Paris, Rome and Fribourg and was a friend of the French sculptors Carpeaux and Clésinger.

This bust is one of a number of subjects depicting powerful women. While the fearsome head of the Gorgon, or Medusa, had long been a sculptural motif - the V&A for instance has an important small bronze head of Medusa by Cellini - it is here translated into an unprecedently monumental form. While this composition was developed into a full size figure used in 1870 to decorate the Paris Opera, its reception in England was mixed. A South Kensington curator of the 1870s described it as a 'theatrical rendering of an ill-conceived ideal'. A reviewer in the 'Art Journal' of 1st June 1866 described it, after seeing it exhibited in the Royal Academy that year, as ...'a work admirable for spirit, power and firm execution [but] it is to be regretted that a coarsely voluptuous bust taints this noble conception with vulgarity'.


Object details

Categories
Object type
TitleLa Gorgone (The Gorgon) (generic title)
Materials and techniques
Bronze, cast
Brief description
Bust, bronze, of a gorgon's head, by Marcello (Duchessa Castiglione Colonna), Paris, ca. 1865
Physical description
Monumental bronze bust of The Gorgon's head.
Dimensions
  • Height: 107cm
  • Width: 68cm
  • Depth: 41cm
  • Width: 28.5cm (Base of sculpture)
  • Depth: 29cm (Base of sculpture)
  • Height: 6cm (Base of sculpture)
  • Weight: 70kg
Gallery label
'American and European Art and Design 1800-1900' A friend of Carpeaux, 'Marcello' adopted her male name to demonstrate her seriousness and to distinguish her works from those of women amateurs. This bust is one of a number of subjects depicting powerful women. While the fearsome gorgon's head had long been a sculptural motif, it is here translated into an unprecedently monumental form. Although this composition was developed into a full size figure used in 1870 to decorate the Paris Opera, a South Kensington curator of the 1870s described it as a 'theatrical rendering of an ill-conceived ideal'.(1987-2006)
Object history
Marcello produced multiple versions of 'La Gorgone', of which at least four marble and 3 bronze variations are extant. This version in bronze was exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1866 under the artist's aristocratic title (Duchess of Castiglione Colonna). The South Kensington Museum purchased the sculpture in May 1866, only weeks after it was unveiled at the Royal Academy. A marble version of this bust was first exhibited at the Paris Salon in 1865.

This bust is one of a number of powerful women depicted by Marcello. While the fearsome gorgon's head had long been a sculptural motif, it is here translated into an unprecedently monumental form. A South Kensington curator of the 1870s described it as a 'theatrical rendering of an ill-conceived ideal'.
Historical context
A friend of Carpeaux, 'Marcello' adopted her male name to demonstrate her seriousness and to distinguish her works from those of women amateurs.
Subject depicted
Summary
The sculptor of this head, Adèle d'Affry, was born in Fribourg, Switzerland, but married Carlo Colonna, Duke of Castiglione, in Rome, and was generally referred to by contemporaries as the Duchesse Colonna. She adopted the male name 'Marcello' to demonstrate her seriousness and to distinguish her works from those of women amateurs. She was largely self-taught. She worked in Paris, Rome and Fribourg and was a friend of the French sculptors Carpeaux and Clésinger.

This bust is one of a number of subjects depicting powerful women. While the fearsome head of the Gorgon, or Medusa, had long been a sculptural motif - the V&A for instance has an important small bronze head of Medusa by Cellini - it is here translated into an unprecedently monumental form. While this composition was developed into a full size figure used in 1870 to decorate the Paris Opera, its reception in England was mixed. A South Kensington curator of the 1870s described it as a 'theatrical rendering of an ill-conceived ideal'. A reviewer in the 'Art Journal' of 1st June 1866 described it, after seeing it exhibited in the Royal Academy that year, as ...'a work admirable for spirit, power and firm execution [but] it is to be regretted that a coarsely voluptuous bust taints this noble conception with vulgarity'.
Bibliographic references
  • Inventory of Art Objects acquired in the Year 1866. Inventory of the Objects in the Art Division of the Museum at South Kensington, arranged According to the Dates of their Acquisition. Vol. 1. London : Printed by George E. Eyre and William Spottiswoode for H.M.S.O., 1868, p. 4
  • Graves, Algernon. The Royal Academy of Arts: a Complete Dictionary of Contributors and Their Work. London, 1905, II. p. 118
  • Reports on the Paris Universal Exhibition, 1867. London, 1868, II. p. 507.
  • Bessis, Henriette. Marcello, or la Duchesse Colonna. Bulletin de la Societe de l'Historie de l'Art Français. Paris, 1967, pp. 153-159
  • Avery, Charles. From David d'Angers to Rodin in Connoisseur. 179, 1972, pp. 231-239
  • Review of Royal Academy Exhibition 1866. Art Journal. 1 June, 1866, V. pp. 171-172
Collection
Accession number
239-1866

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Record createdApril 28, 2006
Record URL
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