Le Paradis – Fontes d’art

Présentation

A cast iron adventure! In Sommevoire, the Compagnons de Saint-Pierre hold the key to Paradise. Created in 1976, this association has preserved two precious assets: the Saint-Pierre Church, which was doomed to demolition (the village having two churches almost side by side) and the Antoine Durenne model collection from the local foundry, called Paradise by the employees, as the statuary dominates the whole. Between 1988 and 1990, the models were transported by the Compagnons from their original hangar (in danger) to municipal buildings for their conservation. And since then, the Compagnons have invited the public to an unusual visit. The Paradise of Sommevoire allows us to imagine the scale of a production and its distribution, on a national and international level. Commemorative monuments, fountains, animal, religious or allegorical statues, kiosks, lush architectural decorations, public lighting… so many works that equip or adorn countless cities in Europe, and throughout the world: United States, Canada, Venezuela, Brazil, Mexico, Colombia, Algeria, Cambodia…