LA STATUE DU BAISER À LA SOURCE

About

Henri Coutheillas – 1862

The sculpture is situated at the foot of a giant sequoia, in the middle of the casino grounds. The work depicts a reclining, nude couple sharing a kiss. The scene’s apparent eroticism at first glance is tempered by the presence of a rocky outcrop, situated between the two figures, upon which the young man leans to tilt his head forward. He thus recreates the classical pose of a man drinking from a stream, a pose also reminiscent of depictions of Narcissus.

Seen in this context, the sculpted young woman is indeed an allegory of the Spring, which explains the title of the work. Coutheillas’s signature is inscribed on the rock. The title appears at the front, on the plinth.

The sculpture is the work of the Limoges-based sculptor Henri Coutheillas (1862–1927). Created in 1908, it was purchased by the State that same year (on 21 May). The State had acquired an earlier version of Coutheillas’ *Kiss at the Spring* at the 1905 Salons, but that first version was in plaster. The sculptural group was originally placed in the gardens of the Élysée Palace: it was moved to the grounds of the Luchon casino in 1949 by a decree dated 28 June 1949: according to Henri Pac, this initiative was the work of Alfred Coste-Floret, MP for Haute-Garonne from 1946 to 1958 and mayor of Luchon from 1947 to 1971.

When it was presented at the exhibition, the sculptural group received glowing reviews; “undoubtedly one of the most interesting works in the sculpture exhibition”, wrote Armand Dayot in *Le Grand Illustré* in 1905.The work was described as follows in *Limoges illustré* in 1907, which hoped to see it set against the shady backdrop of a park: “the man, in the full prime of his virility, leans from the rock towards the wave that flows from it and breathes life into the lips of the woman awakened to love”.