/internal/media/dispatcher/939625/resize%25253Aformat%25253Dthumbnail;jsessionid=8115FD4934556740397226C02B8E14D8The Flood1800Claude Michel, called ClodionOverall: 54.5 x 27.9 x 22.9 cm (21 7/16 x 11 x 9 in.)TerracottaJohn H. and Ernestine A. Payne Fund1981.3981This terracotta is Clodion's small-scale sketch for a lifesize plaster--one of his most important late works--that he exhibited at the Salon of 1801, in Paris. The sculpture depicts a father carrying his son as he struggles against the waves to find a higher elevation. Clodion intentionally selected the heroic subject matter in an attempt to secure a commission from the new consular government of France, headed by Napoleon Bonaparte. Although he earned a first-class medal for his works, the commission never materialized, and the original plaster has disappeared.Sculpture54.500000000022.86000000005892101