|
 René
Quillivic
René Quillivic was born on the 13th May
1879 in a small house just on the edge of what is now the
‘Place Jean Cosquer’ in the town of Plouhinec. Initially, he
trained to be a carpenter, but soon enough, he downed his
woodworking tools in favour of the sculptor’s hammer and
chisel, eventually gaining a place at the great Parisian art
school ‘L’École des Beaux Arts de Paris’.
His sculpture ‘Le groupe des sonneurs bretons’ won him
the Gold Medal from the Salon Des Beaux-Arts in 1907. His
works appear everywhere through Finistère, especially war
memorials, including those at Pont-Croix, Pont l’Abbé and
Plozévet. The best-known monument in his hometown of
Plouhinec shows a woman standing in prayer (Quillivic
modelled her on his own mother).
It’s also thanks to Quillivic that we have ‘La
Bigoudène’ at Pors-Poulhan, which marks the line between the
areas known as Pays Bigouden and the Cap Sizun.
Quillivic’s works are sculpted from Breton granite
(usually Kersanite) or wood engravings. He was equally
well-known for his seascapes.
Quillivic’s birthplace is surrounded by his work: a
sculpture of Saint Jacques on top of a column; a carved
cross known as a ‘Calvaire’, which is sadly incomplete; and
an incredibly touching bronze sculpture. This last piece is
a bust of his mother in a traditional head-dress, her
expression deeply serious and resigned.
Quillivic died on the 8th of April 1969 at
the grand age of eighty-nine.
The Bigouden Region and La Bigoudène statue
There is an area of Western Brittany known as ‘Bigouden
country’ (Pays Bigouden) but have you ever wondered where
the name comes from?
The Bigouden is named after the women of the area, who
themselves gained this nickname from the term for their
traditional head-dress and hairstyle. The ladies of Pont
l’Abbé and nearby areas used to style their hair around
curlers to create a unique effect: the curlers were called
‘bigoudi’ and were certainly around from the 1860s, so by
the turn of the century the women themselves were referred
to as ‘Bigoudens’.
The statue known as La Bigoudène
was inaugurated in 1961, marking the line between the ‘Pays
Bigouden’ (on the Plozévet side) and the Cap Sizun (on the
Plouhinec side). She wears a coat of arms showing the
Ermine – symbol of Armor – and sheaves of wheat –
Quillivic’s homage to his father. An inscription on the foot
of the statue reads ‘Ama echu bro bigoudenn’, which roughly
translates as ‘here ends Bigouden country’.
This
famous demarcation continues with the stream of Kersandy.
|
