Pierre Le Gros | |
|---|---|
 Portrait of Pierre Le Gros the Younger (anonymous drawing, early 18th century; unknown location) | |
| Born | 12 April 1666 Paris |
| Died | 3 May 1719 (aged 53) Rome |
| Resting place | San Luigi dei Francesi, Rome |
| Nationality | French |
| Occupation | Sculptor |
| Style | Baroque |
Pierre Le Gros (12 April 1666 Paris – 3 May 1719 Rome) was a French sculptor, active almost exclusively in Baroque Rome where he was the pre-eminent sculptor for nearly two decades.[1]: 18
He created monumental works of sculpture for the Jesuits and the Dominicans and found himself centre stage of the two most prestigious artistic campaigns of his era, the Altar of Saint Ignatius of Loyola in the Gesù and the cycle of the twelve huge Apostle statues in the nave of the Lateran basilica. Le Gros' handling of the marble attracted powerful patrons like the papal treasurer Lorenzo Corsini (much later to become Pope Clement XII) and Cardinal de Bouillon, as Dean of the Sacred College the highest ranking cardinal. He also played a prominent role in more intimate settings like the chapel of the Monte di Pietà and the Cappella Antamori in San Girolamo della Carità, both little treasures of the Roman late baroque not known to many because they are difficult to access.
Le Gros was the most exuberant baroque sculptor of all his contemporaries but eventually lost his long battle for artistic dominance to a prevailing classicist tendency against which he fought in vain.
- ^ Gerhard Bissell, Pierre le Gros, 1666–1719, Reading, Berkshire 1997.