- Paul Philippoteaux
Paul Philippoteaux (
27 January 1846 – 1923) was a French artist. He is best known for a cyclorama of the Battle of Gettysburg.Life and career
Paul Philippoteaux was born in
Paris , the son of the French artist Henri Emmanuel Felix Philippoteaux. His education was at the Collège Henri-IV, theÉcole des Beaux-Arts in Paris, and in the studio of his father, as well as the studios of Leon Cogniet, and Alexander Cabanal.He became interested in cycloramas and in collaboration with his father created "The Defence of the Fort d'Issy" in 1871. Other works included "Taking of Plevna" (Turko-Russian War), the "Passage of the Balkans", "The Belgian Revolution of 1830", "Attack in the Park", "The Battle of Kars", "The Battle of Tel-el-Kebir", and the "Derniere Sortie". cite book | last = Thomas | first = Dean S. | title = The Gettysburg Cyclorama: A Portrayal of the High Tide of the Confederacy | publisher = Thomas Publications | date = 1989| location = Gettysburg, Pennsylvania | pages = 17-19 | isbn = 0-939631-14-8 ]
He was commissioned by a group of Chicago investors in 1879 to create the Gettysburg cyclorama. He spent several weeks in April 1882 at the site of the
Gettysburg Battlefield to sketch and photograph the scene, and extensively researched the battle and its events over several months. Local photographer William H. Tipton created a series of panoramic photographs shot from a wooden tower erected along present-day Hancock Avenue. The photos, pasted together, formed the basis of the composition. Philippoteaux also interviewed several survivors of the battle, including Union generalsWinfield S. Hancock ,Abner Doubleday ,Oliver O. Howard , andAlexander S. Webb , and based his work partly on their recollections.Philippoteaux enlisted a team of five assistants, including his father until his death, to create the final work. It took over a year and a half to complete.cite web | last = Heiser | first = John | title = The Gettysburg Cyclorama | work =
Gettysburg National Military Park | publisher = National Park Service | date = 2005 | url = http://www.nps.gov/archive/gett/gettcyclo.htm | accessdate = 2007-05-03] The finished painting was nearly 100 yards long and weighed six tons.cite web | last = Jarvis | first = Craig | title = Triangle trio buys massive painting | work =The News & Observer (Raleigh, NC) | publisher = The News and Observer Publishing Company | date = May 2, 2007 | url = http://www.newsobserver.com/102/story/569912.html | accessdate = 2007-05-03] When completed for display, the full work included not just the painting, but numerous artifacts and sculptures, including stone walls, trees, and fences. The effect of the painting has been likened to the nineteenth century equivalent of anIMAX theater.Other paintings included "Retour d'un pardon" (1864), "Vannenses" (1865), "Marche en Bretagne"(1865), and "Scene d'invasion" (1866), which were all exhibited at the
Paris salon .Fact|date=May 2008ee also
*
Gettysburg Cyclorama Notes and references
External links
* [http://graphics.nytimes.com/packages/html/arts/20051116_GETTY_PANORAMA.html Gettysburg cyclorama]
* [http://gettysburg.cdmhost.com/cdm4/results.php?CISOOP1=all&CISOFIELD1=button&CISOFIELD2=CISOSEARCHALL&CISOFIELD4=button&CISOOP2=exact&CISOOP3=any&CISOOP4=none&CISOROOT=%2Fp4016coll2&CISOBOX2=&CISOBOX3=&CISOBOX1=pamphlets&Submit=Search Gettysburg Cyclorama Exhibition Pamphlets] Part of the Civil War Era Digital Collection at Gettysburg College
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