Denys Puech

Denys Puech, born December 3, 1854 in Gavernac and died December 9, 1942 in Rodez, was a French sculptor. In his youth, Puech was apprenticed to a marble-maker, then to an ornamentalist in Paris. He was admitted to the École Nationale des Beaux-Arts in Paris in 1875. He studied with Henri Chapu, François Jouffroy and Jean-Alexandre Falguière. He won the Prix de Rome in 1884 and arrived in Rome the following year. He returned to France in 1888 and received numerous official commissions for various commemorative monuments. The Musée Denys Puech, designed by architect André Boyer, was inaugurated in 1910. Puech was director of the French Academy in Rome from 1921 to 1933. Denys Puech created a museum at Villa Medici, with the support of donors. He collected works by former fellows artists, including Houdon's Écorché, now housed in the Villa Medici library.

1921-1933