Bust of President Thiers 1883

Curator: Here we have the "Bust of President Thiers," created in 1883 by the Manufacture nationale de Sèvres. It's a porcelain sculpture, currently held here at The Art Institute of Chicago. Editor: Oh, wow, so pristine! He looks like a freshly iced cake. And that little swirl of hair on top—total defiance. Is he frowning, or just unimpressed? Curator: Well, Adolphe Thiers was a rather divisive figure, a president of the French Third Republic. This bust comes from a time when the very idea of the Republic was contested. Sèvres, a national manufacture, would have aimed to legitimize the regime through portraiture. Editor: Right, porcelain as propaganda! Still, the artist softened the blow. He looks more like a disapproving uncle than a tyrant. It is the detail— look at his coat, you just wanna stroke it… it does look pretty tactile! And I wonder about the color choice - is this cold porcelain intended to convey authority, or what? Curator: The whiteness certainly speaks to neoclassical ideals of purity and reason. Remember, Realism was a dominant mode, but portraiture often blended realism with an idealized representation meant to convey status and character. It is definitely meant to project control and strength. Editor: You can almost feel him saying, "This Republic? I made it." There’s something both amusing and unsettling about it, how something so beautiful could carry so much… weight. Curator: Indeed, a portrait isn't just a likeness, it's an assertion of power, memory, and narrative. Even now. Editor: Thinking about the "weight," the color of the pedestal is such a dark navy... with the brilliant trim that contrasts with the all-white upper part... that base just elevates its sitter—literally. Well, seeing this, I'm newly intrigued to study political propaganda. Curator: And I’m reminded of the constant negotiations between art, politics, and the public sphere that continue to shape our visual culture.