Gaston Redon
Encyclopedia
Gaston Redon was a French architect, teacher, and graphic artist.
Redon was born in Bordeaux
, Aquitaine
to a prosperous family, the younger brother of Odilon Redon
. Gaston attended the Ecole des Beaux-Arts
in the atelier of Louis-Jules André
, and took the Prix de Rome
for architecture in 1883. This entitled him to three years at the Villa Medici
from 1884 to 1887, where he met and became friends with the composer Claude Debussy
.
After his return to Paris, Redon was made the official architect of the Louvre
. The rebuilding and expansion of the Pavilion de Marsan (the most northwestern wing of the palace) between 1900 and 1905 to accommodate the Museum of Decorative Arts amounts to his major built work.
Redon was elected to the Académie des Beaux-Arts
in May 1914, and, jointly with Alfred Henry Recoura, ran an architecture atelier at the Ecole. His students included French architects Henri Marchal
, Roger-Henri Expert
, and Louis-Hippolyte Boileau
among others.
His work includes:
Redon was born in Bordeaux
Bordeaux
Bordeaux is a port city on the Garonne River in the Gironde department in southwestern France.The Bordeaux-Arcachon-Libourne metropolitan area, has a population of 1,010,000 and constitutes the sixth-largest urban area in France. It is the capital of the Aquitaine region, as well as the prefecture...
, Aquitaine
Aquitaine
Aquitaine , archaic Guyenne/Guienne , is one of the 27 regions of France, in the south-western part of metropolitan France, along the Atlantic Ocean and the Pyrenees mountain range on the border with Spain. It comprises the 5 departments of Dordogne, :Lot et Garonne, :Pyrénées-Atlantiques, Landes...
to a prosperous family, the younger brother of Odilon Redon
Odilon Redon
Bertrand-Jean Redon, better known as Odilon Redon was a French symbolist painter, printmaker, draughtsman and pastellist.-Life:...
. Gaston attended the Ecole des Beaux-Arts
École des Beaux-Arts
École des Beaux-Arts refers to a number of influential art schools in France. The most famous is the École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts, now located on the left bank in Paris, across the Seine from the Louvre, in the 6th arrondissement. The school has a history spanning more than 350 years,...
in the atelier of Louis-Jules André
Louis-Jules André
Louis-Jules André was a French academic architect and the head of an important atelier at the École des Beaux-Arts.- Biography :...
, and took the Prix de Rome
Prix de Rome
The Prix de Rome was a scholarship for arts students, principally of painting, sculpture, and architecture. It was created, initially for painters and sculptors, in 1663 in France during the reign of Louis XIV. It was an annual bursary for promising artists having proved their talents by...
for architecture in 1883. This entitled him to three years at the Villa Medici
Villa Medici
The Villa Medici is a mannerist villa and an architectural complex with a garden contiguous with the larger Borghese gardens, on the Pincian Hill next to Trinità dei Monti in Rome, Italy. The Villa Medici, founded by Ferdinando I de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany and now property of the French...
from 1884 to 1887, where he met and became friends with the composer Claude Debussy
Claude Debussy
Claude-Achille Debussy was a French composer. Along with Maurice Ravel, he was one of the most prominent figures working within the field of impressionist music, though he himself intensely disliked the term when applied to his compositions...
.
After his return to Paris, Redon was made the official architect of the Louvre
Louvre
The Musée du Louvre – in English, the Louvre Museum or simply the Louvre – is one of the world's largest museums, the most visited art museum in the world and a historic monument. A central landmark of Paris, it is located on the Right Bank of the Seine in the 1st arrondissement...
. The rebuilding and expansion of the Pavilion de Marsan (the most northwestern wing of the palace) between 1900 and 1905 to accommodate the Museum of Decorative Arts amounts to his major built work.
Redon was elected to the Académie des Beaux-Arts
Académie des beaux-arts
The Académie des Beaux-Arts is a French learned society. It is one of the five academies of the Institut de France.It was created in 1795 as the merger of the:* Académie de peinture et de sculpture...
in May 1914, and, jointly with Alfred Henry Recoura, ran an architecture atelier at the Ecole. His students included French architects Henri Marchal
Henri Marchal
Henri Marchal was a French architect and civil servant. He devoted a great part of his life to research on the art and archeology of Cambodia and the conservation and restoration of Khmer monuments at the archeological site of Angkor, in Cambodia.After his baccalauréat in 1895, he was admitted to...
, Roger-Henri Expert
Roger-Henri Expert
Roger-Henri Expert was a French architect.- Life :The son of a merchant, Expert first studied painting at the École des beaux-arts in Bordeaux, then from 1906 attended the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris, where he studied under Gaston Redon and Gustave Umbdenstock. In 1912 he won the second Prix de...
, and Louis-Hippolyte Boileau
Louis-Hippolyte Boileau
Louis-Hippolyte Boileau was a French architect.Grandson of Louis-Auguste Boileau and son of Louis-Charles Boileau , Louis-Hippolyte studied at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris under Gaston Redon...
among others.
His work includes:
- the tomb of César FranckCésar FranckCésar-Auguste-Jean-Guillaume-Hubert Franck was a composer, pianist, organist, and music teacher who worked in Paris during his adult life....
, Montparnasse CemeteryMontparnasse CemeteryMontparnasse Cemetery is a cemetery in the Montparnasse quarter of Paris, part of the city's 14th arrondissement.-History:Created from three farms in 1824, the cemetery at Montparnasse was originally known as Le Cimetière du Sud. Cemeteries had been banned from Paris since the closure, owing to...
, 1894 - the casino at RoyanRoyanRoyan is a commune in the Charente-Maritime department, along the Atlantic Ocean, in southwestern France.A seaside resort, Royan is in the heart of an urban area estimated at 38,638 inhabitants, which makes it the fourth-largest conurbation in the department, after La Rochelle, Rochefort and Saintes...
, 1895 (destroyed 1945) - Museum of Decorative Arts, Pavillon de Marsan, LouvreLouvreThe Musée du Louvre – in English, the Louvre Museum or simply the Louvre – is one of the world's largest museums, the most visited art museum in the world and a historic monument. A central landmark of Paris, it is located on the Right Bank of the Seine in the 1st arrondissement...
, 1900-1905