Auguste Taunay

Auguste–Marie Taunay
Born	1768 Paris, France
Died	1824 Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Nationality	French
Occupation	Sculptor

Auguste-Marie Taunay (1768–1824) was a French sculptor.

Auguste-Marie Taunay was born in Paris in 1768. He studied sculpture under Jean Guillaume Moitte (1746–1810) at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris. At the age of 24 he was awarded the first prize for Sculpture, the Prix de Rome, on 1 September 1792 for a bas-relief. Due to the turmoil of the early phases of the French Revolution (1789–1799) he did not travel to Rome. He worked as a sculptor at the Manufacture nationale de Sèvres, a porcelain works, from 1802 to 1807. He decorated the Louvre Palace stairway and made a statue of The Cuirassier (1807) for the Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel. Between 1808 and 1814 he exhibited in several Salons. He made a well-known statue of Napoleon with his arms crossed.

Auguste-Marie Taunay was a member of the Missão Artística Francesa (French Artistic Mission) organized by Joachim Lebreton which brought a group of artists to Brazil, arriving on 25 March 1816. These included the painter Jean-Baptiste Debret (1768-1848), Auguste's brother the painter Nicolas Antoine Taunay (1755-1830), the engraver Charles-Simon Pradier (1786-1847)), the sculptor Marc Ferrez (1788-1850), his brother the engraver Zepherin Ferrez (1797-1851) and the architect Auguste-Henri-Victor Grandjean de Montigny (1776-1850). They were to form the nucleus of a royal art academy in Brazil.

The arrival of the French group caused some controversy among the local Portuguese intelligentsia, who were concerned at the excessive influence being given to the French in developing the cultural life of Brazil. In turn, the French were unhappy with political appointments such as the appointment of Henrique José da Silva as head of the school in place of Lebreton. This was the reason why Tauney's brother, Nicholas Antoine Taunay, returned to France.

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