John Gibson (sculptor)
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John Gibson (born June 19, 1790 in Gyffin , † January 27, 1866 in Rome ) was an English sculptor.
John Gibson came to Liverpool at the age of nine , was freed from his craft studies with the help of the historian William Roscoe and devoted himself to studying anatomy and modeling until his successes paved the way for him to London and, as a result of a subscription organized by Roscoe, to Rome in 1817.
The patron's recommendation to Antonio Canova also gave him a place in his studio. After Canova's death he went to Thorvaldsen . Until his arrival in Rome, he had only worked autodidactically .
This was shown by his sleeping shepherd and the group begun in 1819: Mars and ∞Cupido , owned by the Duke of Devonshire at Chatsworth. But already his psyche, carried up by the Zephyrs (1821), and his Hylas , surprised by the nymphs (1826), now in the National Gallery in London , showed the change.
From then on, his works betray constant clarification and increasing perfection, even if the all-too close connection to antiquity detracted from the originality and often accused him of imitation.
Nymphs, Cupid, Psyche, Paris and similar figures of youthful beauty preoccupied him until he was induced to do some portrait statuary work, such as the two statues of Huskissons in Liverpool and the statue of the Queen in Buckingham Palace , which later the group for the Westminster Palace followed: the Queen, introducing the allegorical figures of wisdom and justice, and the tomb of the Duchess of Leicester at Longford are the ideal figures, as in particular Venus with the turtle at his feet, which he himself considered to be his most perfect work. On this statue he tried to carry out the Greek polychromy as he imagined it (the flesh ivory, the eyes pale blue, the hair blond, the hairnet golden). After staying in Rome for 48 years, he died there on January 27, 1866.
literature
- Anna Sophie Frasca-Rath: John Gibson & Antonio Canova. Reception, transfer, staging . Böhlau, Vienna 2018.
- Anna Sophie Frasca-Rath: John Gibson. The Canova reception in the British Community in Rome . Dissertation, University of Vienna 2014
- Harald Tesan: Thorvaldsen and his sculpture school in Rome . Böhlau, Cologne 1998, ISBN 3-412-14197-6 .
Web links
http://gibson-trail.uk - Virtual exhibition of the works of John Gibson in London
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Gibson, John |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | English sculptor |
| DATE OF BIRTH | June 19, 1790 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Gyffin |
| DATE OF DEATH | January 27, 1866 |
| Place of death | Rome |