Susan Durant

Susan Durant Durant (8 July 1827 – 1 January 1873) was a British artist and sculptor. She was one of the first female sculptors to achieve critical and financial success in Victorian Britain. Durant created a substantial body of work, often in marble and featuring characters from English literature or the Bible, but much of which has been lost. George Durant was a successful silk broker and on at least one occasion the family spent a winter in Rome which encouraged Susan Durant's interest in sculpture. Although she established a studio in London, Durant frequently returned to Paris to work with de Triqueti either as his assistant or on common commissions. From 1847 until her death, Durant frequently exhibited portrait busts at the Royal Academy in London, including a self-portrait in 1853.

Notable works Two works by Durant, The Chief Mourner and Belisarius, were featured in the Great Exhibition held in London during 1851, and her statuette of Robin Hood was shown at the 1857 Art Treasures Exhibition in Manchester.

Portrait of a Lady, (1866) Princess Alexandra or Princess Alice.

Through de Triqueti, Durant was introduced to members of the British Royal Family and received several commissions from Queen Victoria and, for a time, taught model making to Princess Louise.

Durant became a collaborator on a pendant commissioned by Queen Victoria as a gift to Victoria Alexandrina Elizabeth Grey for her wedding in June 1877.

Death and legacy

During her life, Durant promoted equal access for women to education, the vote and to professional careers. She died of pleurisy in Paris in 1873 and is buried in that city's Pere Lachaise Cemetery.

Selected exhibitions 1847 Royal Academy, London;- Also in 1848 to 1853; 1856 to 1860, 1863, 1864, 1866 to 1869, 1872 and 1873 1851 Great Exhibition, London 1857 Art Treasures Exhibition, Manchester 1858 & 1863 Society of Female Artists 1860 British Institution 1862 International Exhibition, London.