Josset, Raoul, 1899-1957

Josset (1899-1957) was a French sculptor who immigrated to the United States in the late 1920s, lived in northern Texas and worked with Dallas architect Donald Nelson.

From the description of Raoul Josset papers, 1927-1967. (University of Texas Libraries). WorldCat record id: 28382902

The following paragraphs are excerpts from Raoul Josset's (1899-1957) obituary, written by Jack Sheridan in the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. The clipping is undated. Josset died on June 29, 1957 and one would assume that it was printed in a timely manner.

"...Raoul Josset was born in France and received his early training at the Beaux Arts School, the Lycee of Lyons and Paris and studied under the noted Antoine Bourdelle. In his working time in France he created more than 15 memorials between 1920 and 1926. It was then that he turned his eyes to the United States.

In 1933 he executed two 45-foot Indians in grey granite for the pylons of the George Rogers Clark Memorial Bridge in Vincennes, Ind. There were two major works in Chicago the following year. He then came to Texas where he created the Statues of the Spirit of the Centennial, 16 feet high; the statues of the United States, France and Mexico, all 20 feet in cast stone, made for the Texas Centennial which stand in pride today in State Fair Park.

Much of Josset's finest work can be viewed in Texas. The superb Refugio Memorial to Captain King, standing 30 feet in bronze and granite; the statue at Washington on the Brazos, bronze statue of George Childress, eight feet; the Goliad Memorial, 30 feet in granite; and 20 bronze plaques for Texas counties.

There is a Josset masterwork at Lavaca where the 30-foot statue of Cavalier de la Salle in granite has been hailed as one of his finest.

Thousands of Texans and out-of-state visitors have marveled at the stone bas-relief 75 feet by 7 feet high, representing the Construction of the Temple of Solomon for the Waco Grand Lodge Masonic Temple.

In 1940-1943 he executed a bronze statue of Gen. Lafayette which stands on the Esplanade of the Philadelphia Museum of Fine Arts. This work was commissioned as the result of Josset's winning a national competition. In the competition for the Jefferson Memorial in Washington, D.C. Josset often remarked with a rueful smile, "I ran second."

Prizes and distinguished honors come to the little Frenchman who became an American citizen in 1934 and a Texan not so long after that. He was made an Associate Member of the National Academy of Design in 1954, one of the highest honors to be bestowed on an artist in the United States. He was awarded the Rome Prize in 1923; the Prix Paris in 1924-25-26.

Speaking of art in his adopted state Josset once said: `There is so much development to be done in Texas with fine arts. There is money and enthusiasm here and the people know what they want. Instead of grotesque fads in art that are so unfortunately present in much of today's work, Texans seek things with meaning and simple beauty for their homes and their appreciation. They choose with an eye of permanence, thinking in terms of years, generations, maybe forever.'

Those who know his St. Francis are moved by the deep simplicity of the work. The bowed head and the flow of the saint's robe symbolize the soft, gentle nature of St. Francis. There is overall the power of the purity of lines that is at once an invitation and the reception of renewed strength.

`Purity of line is the most important thing,' Josset said. `In all forms of sculpture preceding the Gothic period there were magnificent works, true. They were monumental, proud and solid representations of the individual gods. It was the Gothic who brought the purity of line to their work. It was the Gothic who taught the stone to pray."

This much for the greatness of the artist and his accomplishments. What of the man himself? Josset was a small man, his hair curly and his face somewhat like that of a mischievous cherub. As he talked in his rapid French accent, his hands constantly engaged in the interplay of punctuation. He was a man proud of his work, not vain and boastful, but sure and dedicated. He loved to tell stories of his amours. His laugh was infectious and his delight in a good audience knew no bounds. In a way, he was like a kind of Don Camillo, saintly in a manner with a dash of Gallic earthiness to spice the world around him.

The last time I saw Raoul Josset was during an after-opera gathering in a home in Dallas in May. There were only a few guests present in a large room. At the end of the room was a slightly raised platform on which stood a grand piano. Someone was playing the piano that night and Raoul, already a sick man, was persuaded to get up on the little stage and sing a French song. That he did. He sang and danced a little step as he sang. The song was "Madelon."

I'll never hear "Madelon" again so long as I live that the image of a great artist and a good, warm friend will not be comfortingly vivid and live at my side.

Life has many trials and vexations and a few honest privileges. It has been an honor personally to have known Raoul Josset as a friend; Texas has been privileged to receive the fruits of his artistry to hold for all time in heritage."

From the guide to the Raoul Josset (1899-1957) Archival records and photographs, Public Art Commissions JOS Accession number(s): 1986008, Received as part of the Donald Nelson collection., 1927-1967, (Alexander Architectural Archive, The University of Texas at Austin.)