It was with great emotion that the statue of Princess Grace, created in the artist's studio at the Château de Saint-Lary, was unveiled on 11 December 2002. Jean-Claude du Barry, the artist's husband and a privileged witness to the scene, recounts: "Prince Rainier had wanted the whole family to b...
It was with great emotion that the statue of Princess Grace, created in the artist's studio at the Château de Saint-Lary, was unveiled on 11 December 2002. Jean-Claude du Barry, the artist's husband and a privileged witness to the scene, recounts: "Prince Rainier had wanted the whole family to be gathered around him for the inauguration of the statue of Princess Grace, who died 20 years ago. It was also the Prince's first outing since his hospitalisation. The symbolism of the event is clear. When Grace appeared, standing 1.85m tall, the sovereign shed a tear. Caroline's eyes were even more beautiful. Stephanie and Albert were very moved. The artist also had a lump in her throat as she presented her work. Daphne du Barry said that "these six months spent with Grace in her studio in the Gers, had allowed her to "capture the greatness of the soul of the departed princess". Princess Grace is shown wearing a cape and a simple dress. Du Barry explains that she wanted to bring out Grace's personality in her work: "I portrayed her as a princess and president of the Red Cross, rather than as an actress. I imagined putting a cape on her, a symbol of elegance [...] But beyond the clothing, I wanted to reveal her presence and give a spiritual dimension to her work. Since the death of the princess, Prince Rainier III had forbidden her effigy to be represented in the Principality out of respect and modesty. Daphne du Barry's work is therefore highly symbolic. The sculpture was commissioned by the Foundation for the Arts of the Compagnie monégasque de banque.
Daphne du Barry, a Dutch national, was born on 5 July 1950 in Arnhem (Netherlands). After secondary school, she studied languages in Munich and then in Montreal. Later she studied modern literature at the Sorbonne for three years. In 1971 she met Jean-Claude du Barry, an art critic, in Salvador Dali's house in Cadaques, whom she married a few years later. After a short career in pop music, she studied drawing with the Hungarian master Akos Szabo for five years in Paris. In Florence she met Marcello Tommasi, one of the representatives of classical figurative sculpture in Italy, and entered his studio as a student. At the same time, she entered the Academy of Arts and Drawing in Florence. She created about ten monuments in Europe and received various prizes. In a classical figurative style, Daphne du Barry masters the science of beautiful proportions, the outline of bodies and transcended expression. She surprises by the inexhaustible variety of her themes and the unity of her style. Her cult of beautiful bodies comes from an almost ideal inspiration, but it is the charm of the intelligence more than that of the senses that captivates us. Daphne du Barry's work gives us a better understanding of the reflection
