Jean Désiré Ringel d'Illzach

Jean Désiré Ringel d’Illzach was a specialized sculptor and metalworker whose documented career flourished in a focused period between 1884 and 1893. His practice was dedicated primarily to the creation of portrait medallions and plaques featuring prominent French intellectual and cultural figures of the late 19th century.

Eight of Ringel d’Illzach’s metalworks are represented in significant American public collections, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Art Institute of Chicago. These objects reflect a contemporary interest in memorializing influential figures spanning science, literature, and engineering. Notable subjects in his body of work include portraits of the dramatists Emile Augier (1820-1889) and Alexandre Dumas fils (1824-1895), the legendary author Victor Hugo (1802-1885), the chemist Louis Pasteur, and the developer of the Suez Canal, Ferdinand de Lesseps.

The inclusion of these finely detailed pieces in such collections attests to the historical and museum-quality nature of his craftsmanship. Though the original metalwork is specialized, many of the portraits captured by the artist are now accessible. Because these archival objects are typically in the public domain, researchers and enthusiasts can often locate high-quality prints or downloadable artwork derived from the original works. Documents and reproductions related to Jean Désiré Ringel d’Illzach prints remain valuable resources for the study of late 19th-century commemorative sculpture.