As part of the commemorations of the twenty-fifth anniversary of Prince Albert I’s reign, the representatives of the main foreign colonies in the Principality wanted to pay tribute to him in thanks for the hospitality that had been shown to them. An international committee led by Camille Blanc pro...
As part of the commemorations of the twenty-fifth anniversary of Prince Albert I’s reign, the representatives of the main foreign colonies in the Principality wanted to pay tribute to him in thanks for the hospitality that had been shown to them. An international committee led by Camille Blanc proposed creating a monument dedicated to oceanography and the discoveries of the Scholar Prince. The commission was entrusted to Constant Roux. Abandoning the traditional fiction which saw the ocean and its depths as a quick-tempered god who was part man, part fish, the artist depicted three figures grouped around a rock featuring a portrait of Prince Albert I in half relief. Waves and some examples of marine animals symbolise the oceans. The net is a reference to the exploration of the deep seabed. At the top of the figures from the ocean stands the allegorical statue of Science. The sculpture’s pyramid arrangement established the unity between Science and Ocean, thereby marking the advent of the science of oceanography.
Born on 20 April 1865 in Marseille, Constant Roux began an apprenticeship in his home town with Achille Blanqui then, in 1879, attended sculpture classes with Émile Aldebert at the École des Beaux-Arts. He continued his training in Paris with Henri Chapu at the Académie Julian and then at Jules Cavelier’s studio affiliated to the École Nationale des Beaux-Arts. In 1894, a little before his thirtieth birthday, Roux won the Premier Prix de Rome and the Prix Maubert, awarded every five years to the best sculpture. This opened up the opportunity to study at the Villa Medici. He received commissions from the French State and the City of Marseille, and was a regular medal winner at the Salon exhibitions in Paris. In 1914, following the unveiling of Science Discovering the Riches of the Ocean, Prince Albert I awarded him the Cross of the Knight of the Order of Saint Charles. He was promoted to the rank of Officer in 1920. On 19 February 1925, Constant Roux was elected as a member of the Académie des Sciences, Belles Lettres et Arts de Marseille (Marseille Academy of Sciences, Letters and Arts). He continued to live in the city until his death on 17 November 1942.
