All That Glitters Is Not Necessarily Gold

We've seen that Louis Dupuy advocated the use of art reproductions.  Most of the examples he acquired are found in Hotel de Paris' public and private spaces.  However, Dupuy appears to have been interested in creating a dramatic outdoor presentation as well, and sometime around 1893 utilized five cast “show figures” on his Norman Revival hotel.  These figures were intended to advertise, inform, and ornament.  The statues were by J. L. Mott Iron Works of New York, and were mass produced of cast zinc either bronzed or gilded.  Painted finishes were also available and less expensive.

Justice Unblinded, J. L. Mott Iron Works

Arguably the most dominant of Dupuy’s collection is Justice Unblinded, which stands 6 feet 7 inches tall.  Some believe the figure was inspired by French Neoclassical sculptor Jean-Antoine Houdon’s Bust of Napoleon.  The casting was listed in a catalog from 1890 for $950.  Statues with metallic finishes cost about 10% more than those offered with one painted coat.  The statue was placed following the destruction by fire of buildings to the west of the hotel, and may have been a commentary on the slow removal of charred debris that remained after the loss of the McClellan Opera House in 1892 (Dupuy led a group of local citizens to petition the Town of Georgetown for an expedient clean-up of the lots). 

Reclining Stag, J. L. Mott Iron Works

Much like a cigar store Indian, Reclining Stag or Reclining Deer advertised Hotel de Paris as an inn where travelers could eat and rest.  The figure portrays an American white-tailed deer, with one front leg extended.  It stands 3 feet 8 inches tall and was bronzed or gilded.  In 1890, it sold for $70.  The stag symbolizes St. Julian the Hospitaler, the patron saint of innkeepers and travelers.

Boy With Pan, J. L. Mott Iron Works

Flanking the stag is a charming pair of bronzed or gilded water bearers known as Boy With Pan or Boy Fountain.  The statuettes stood approximately 2 feet 3 inches tall and were typically accompanied by a cast iron ground basin decorated by long leaves or shells and frogs.  Dupuy’s figures supported reservoirs above their heads to catch or hold water, and may have served as birdbaths.

Reclining Lion, J. L. Mott Iron Works

Reclining Lion, by Berlin sculptor A. Schiffelman, appeared in Mott’s 1890 catalog.  It stood 2 feet 10 inches tall, was bronzed or gilded and sold for $200.  Dupuy’s copy guards a gateway that leads to Hotel de Paris’ courtyards.  The statue has a plaquette on its self-base with the inscription “J. L. MOTT IRON WORKS NYC.”

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Dupuy Promoted Use of Art Reproductions

Victorian and Edwardian members of the middle-class substituted affordable and plentiful Parian ware for expensive marble portrait busts and statues.  Parian is a fine, matte, nearly white porcelain that originated in Britain in 1842.  It was made of kaolin, feldspar, and Cornish stone and ball-clay, then poured into plaster of Paris molds, assembled, dried, and fired.  Parian takes its name from fine-grained, semi-translucent pure-white marble found at Mount Elias on the Greek island of Paros.  The Elgin Marbles in the British Museum were carved from this stone.

Dupuy’s bust of Shakespeare is small (approximately 9” tall).  According to his obituary, he would have kept it paired with another Parian ware bust (perhaps a likeness of Charles Dickens) in his bedroom or study.

Most Parian ware was made in Britain by the firms Copeland & Garrett (Copeland & Company), Minton, and T. & R. Boote.  Wedgwood made unglazed white china marketed under the name Carrara, but commonly referred to as Parian.  A bit of Parian was produced in the United States and European countries other than Britain; for instance, Germany made Parian heads and limbs for dolls.

Parian ware was offered as busts, figures, figural groups, vases, jugs, medallions, and other decorative ornaments for the homeowner in search of a status symbol.  “While we cannot have the masterpieces of Michelangelo and Cellini, we can at least have the reproductions,” stated Louis Dupuy. 

Hotel de Paris Museum’s Parian ware and related items consist of one portrait bust of William Shakespeare and five black and white studio photographs of Parian ware statuettes or reductions, perhaps given Dupuy or left behind by a traveling salesman selling items by Copeland & Garrett.  A second portrait bust, most likely portraying a favorite author of Dupuy’s, was lost sometime after 1954, and, it is suspected a sixth photograph has also disappeared, but it is not known when.


Venus with the Apple

By 1898, Dupuy had framed in oak and displayed in his bedroom a 14” by 20” photograph of a Parian ware statuette entitled Venus with the Apple, after Bertel Thorvaldsen’s original work by the same name.  This Neoclassical image of the Goddess of Love enhanced Dupuy’s print collection of tempting female nudes.

On the Sea Shore, Storm

We do not know if the other photographs of Parian ware statuettes were exhibited by Dupuy or not.  At the very least, sometime in the early 20^th Century Hotel de Paris proprietor Sarah Burkholder displayed in Sample Room 2 a 10” by 20” framed Parian ware image of a wind-blown, barefooted girl seated on the beach, a copy after Joseph Durham’s On the Sea Shore, Storm.  Since Storm was one of a pair, it is possible Dupuy owned a complementary print titled On the Sea Shore, Calm, which depicted a seated, barefooted boy holding shells in a hat.  The placement of Storm on the left side of the fireplace mirror implies Calm may have been displayed on the right side of the mirror.

Beatrice

Currently on exhibit in Sample Room 1 are two more 10” by 20” framed photographs of Parian ware statuettes:  copies of Edgar George Papworth’s Beatrice (after Beatrice “Bice” di Folco Portinari, the inspiration for Dante Alighieri’s La Vita Nuova and Divine Comedy) and John Gibson’s beautifully draped Roman goddess Flora, a symbol of flowers, springtime, and fertility.  An unframed 10” by 20” photograph of a Parian ware Venus de’ Medici remains in storage at Hotel de Paris Museum.

Please consider making a tax deductible contribution at hoteldeparismuseum.org.

A Hermit's Hospitable Home

Frenchman Adolphe Francois Gerard was born to innkeepers from Alençon in 1844.  As an adult, he demanded beautiful objects, luxurious accommodations, good food, fine wine, strong spirits, imported cigars...and an appreciative and captive audience.  However, he had a chequered past that included an allegation of plagiarism and his actual desertion from the United States Army.  Therefore, Gerard re-invented himself as “Louis Dupuy,” a miner in Georgetown, a bustling mining settlement located in the wilds of Colorado's high country.


Eventually, a disabling mining injury that left him scarred resulted in a solution for his questionable future.  Along with his false identity, he invented a complementary make-believe world within the walls of his unique creation, Hotel de Paris.  Either out of nostalgia for his past or to add credibility to his character, Dupuy decorated his property with images of the military, innkeepers, and the French countryside.


In only a few years, Dupuy became widely known as an eccentric hotelier and restaurateur.  He employed Chinese laborers to execute his vision of a luxurious Norman inn close to passes near the top of the Continental Divide.  He referred to his hotel and restaurant as "this little souvenir (of Alençon, France)."  For his guests, the property provided some of the best lodging in the Western United States; for Dupuy, it served as his hideout, and, conversely, his stage.


In 1898, The Illustrated American (which most likely wrote a feature about Dupuy at his own suggestion) called him "a singular character," "a host and a hermit," and "a recluse."  Dupuy was known to turn customers away, close for business to visit his ranch “Troublesome Creek,” and spar with guests about religion, philosophy, science, and politics.  Yet, he was thought of as a gentleman and it has been discovered he courted women and looked kindly on children.  In 1900, he died a 56 year old bachelor with no known descendants.


Louis had not planned on dying.  In fact, an illustration from his letterhead showed Hotel de Paris with a sizeable addition of six more guest rooms.  Furthermore, the ornamental wood rack on which he hung his fourteen room keys had the capacity to hold twenty keys in all.  It is apparent Dupuy was going to continue investing in his property, thereby gaining guests, and, theoretically, growing his reputation as “consummate host.”


The bold steps of updating stationery and installing a new key rack before the property was even expanded indicate Dupuy was succeeding as a businessman and showman.  It seems he subscribed to a similar viewpoint as the character Ray “If you build it, he will come” Kinsella in the movie Field of Dreams.


Promotional tools included the key rack, as well as custom key fobs, soaps, bills of fare, and guest registers.  Much like a cigar store Indian, a gilded zinc statue of a stag (representing Julian the Hospitaller, the patron saint of innkeepers and travelers) beckoned from one of the hotel’s high courtyard walls.  Dupuy placed advertisements in the local newspaper, and had a large wall mural expertly painted below a hand-lettered billboard fastened to a prominent exterior wall.  The name of the inn appeared in gilded letters below the building’s elaborate cornice, and a small sign with the dining room’s name “Louis’” hung on the second floor balcony.  Brazenly, the assumed name “Louis Dupuy” was spelled out in capitalized, gilded letters on the lintel above the hotel entrance.


Perhaps the daredevil in Gerard is what pushed him to build his inn and surround himself with an admiring clientele, despite being on the run.  No matter what his reasoning, Adolphe Francois Gerard discovered the best way to hide was center stage and in the spotlight.

Please consider making a tax deductible contribution at hoteldeparismuseum.org.