Thèse de doctorat en Histoire de l'art et archéologie
Sous la direction de Luce Barlangue.
Soutenue en 1997
à Montpellier 3 .
Theodore riviere (1857-1912), sculpteur francais, recoit une formation traditionnelle a l'ecole des beaux-arts de toulouse, puis a l'ecole nationale des beaux-arts de paris. Il debute sa carriere sous l'influence de falguiere et de mercie. Decourage par l'insucces, il est attire par l'orient. Le voyage le revele a son art en lui apportant, non seulement de nouveaux themes d'inspiration, quelquefois a travers la litterature, mais aussi un style personnel et novateur dont l'illustration type est l'oeuvre-phare, salammbo chez matho de retour a paris, il se distingue par une sculpture de petit format qu'il applique egalement au nu et au portrait en pied de ses contemporains. Ii associe des materiaux a la polychromie raffinee qui participent a l'expression de son sujet. Il collabore en meme temps avec des editeurs du bronze et de la porcelaine. Il repond ainsi aux orientations souhaitees par l'union centrale des arts decoratifs et a son inclination pour les theories de l'art social des 1900, il retourne a la statuaire de ses debuts en l'adaptant aux monuments publics eriges en indochine et en france, sans abandonner toutefois le genre decoratif qui lui a valu le succes. Sa sculpture, le plus souvent d'inspiration litteraire et anecdotique, vaut non seulement par les qualites de vie et de mouvement exprimes, mais encore par le raffinement des formes et celui des materiaux. Elle est le reflet des gouts contemporains. Elle temoigne aussi d'un art qui s'adapte a l'ideologie de la iiie republique.
Theodore riviere (1857-1912), french sculptor, receives a traditional formation at toulouse's fine arts school, then at paris's national fine arts school. He starts his carrier under the falguiere's and mercie's influence. Unsuccessful, he is attracted by orient. Travelling allows him free himself and gives him new inspiration's subjects, sometimes through literature, and a novating personal style too. These new qualities appear in his master work salammho chez matho. Coming back again at paris, he distinguishes himself by a little size sculpture. This size made use for nude and for his contemporaries' fulllengh portrait. He associates materials which have a delicate polychromy, and they contribute to his work's expression. At the same times, he collaborates with some china's and bronze's editors. He follows trends wished by the central union of decorative arts and his tendency for the social art theories. As for back as 1900, he comes back to monumental sculpture he did at his beginning, and fits it to public monuments erected in indochina and in france, without missing the successfull decorative genus. His sculpture, often inspirated by literature and anecdote, values by life qualities and movement expressed, and by form's and materials refinement. It's the reflection of his contemporaries' trends. It gives evidence of an art which adapts itself to the third republic's ideology.