Lecourtier, Prosper

Born in Gremilly in 1855, little is known of the life of Prosper Lecourtier.  He trained under the direction of Animalier master Emmanuel Fremiet and exhibited at the Salon de la Sociéte des Artistes Français in Paris winning a third class medal in 1880, a second class medal in 1879 and a first class medal in 1902.  He also won a bronze medal at the Exposition Universelle of 1900 and continued to exhibit almost every year from 1875 through his death in 1924.  The body of his work is extensive with a distinct specialization in Animalier sculpture where he was well regarded for a sophisticated and sensitive approach in the modeling of his subjects.  He was a close friend of Hippolyte Moreau and on at least one occasion worked in collaboration with him on "Piqueur au Relais" where he modeled the dogs.  His works presently held in museum collection are Great Dane Feeding Her Young (Provins Museum), The Forgotten One - a sensitive study of a braying donkey (Tourcoing Museum) and three works in Guéret.

Literature & Further Readings:

• The Dictionary of Western Sculptors in Bronze, James Mackay, 1977
• E. Benezit Dictionary of Artists, Vol. VIII, Gründ, 2006, p. 698
• Bronzes of the Nineteenth Century: A Dictionary of Sculptors, Pierre Kjellberg, p. 419-21
• Art Bronzes, Michael Forrest, p. 213-215, p. 478
• The Animaliers, James Mackay, p. 67-69
• Animals in Bronze, Christopher Payne