Adrienne Lafayette joins campus as part of College’s Bicentennial

By Bryan Hay 

The Marquis de Lafayette, standing in statue form at several campus locations for decades, will soon be reunited with his wife.

As part of its Bicentennial celebration, Lafayette College commissioned American artist Audrey Flack (1931-2024), revered for her pioneering public sculptures and photorealist paintings, to create a sculpted bronze bust of French noblewoman Adrienne Françoise de Noailles (1759-1807), who at age 14 married the College’s namesake and became known as Madame de Lafayette, a champion of the Marquis’ lifelong commitment to the cause of human rights.

Flack’s last major work, the over-life-size 350-pound sculpture, 42 inches tall and 36 inches wide, will be installed in the area of Skillman Library and unveiled and dedicated during the Council of Lafayette Women Conference on March 7, 2026.

Audrey Flack’s signature | Photo by JaQuan Alston

The project originated in 2015, when Flack served as Lafayette’s Richard A. and Rissa W. Grossman Visiting Artist. Robert Mattison, Metzgar Professor of Art History Emeritus, who helped arrange the residency, recalled how Flack took notice of the predominant campus imagery of the Marquis de Lafayette, suggesting that perhaps Adrienne, who supported Lafayette’s ambitions and endured hardship and personal loss with great dignity during the French Revolution, should also be represented. Her inspiration ultimately led to the commission for the College’s Bicentennial.

Based on iconic images of Adrienne and biographies of her life from the Special Collections and College Archives, Flack last year completed a maquette of Adrienne, who is represented in her 20s, in the early years of her marriage to Lafayette.

In her final months as she worked on the bust, Flack gained the admiration of President Nicole Hurd, who visited the artist at her New York studio in December 2023. They quickly developed a friendship and bond over their shared interest in sainted women.

“I’m happy to celebrate this historic artistic moment with our community,” said Hurd, who thanked the F.M. Kirby Foundation, Inc. for its generous support of the project.

“We are very excited to have had the opportunity to allow Audrey Flack to pursue her vision and celebrate her final work of art and her legacy,” she added.

“As we launch our Bicentennial celebration, this work allows us to commemorate Adrienne Lafayette and her strength and courage in the face of hardship, and serves as inspiration for the role of women at Lafayette and in the greater world. As we lift up the Marquis de Lafayette as the inspiration for the founding of the College, we also lift up Adrienne and Audrey and their contributions. It is an incredibly important moment.”

Artist Brian Booth Craig, a sculptor who specializes in bronze and Flack’s longtime assistant, utilized Flack’s tools and maquette to complete the full-size sculpture in clay, from which the finished bronze will be cast.

In addition to President Hurd and Prof. Mattison, Elaine Stomber ’89, P’17, ’21, co-director of Special Collections and College Archives and College Archivist, also worked and communicated closely with Flack and Craig on the project and coordinated scheduling with the foundry. Rico Reyes, director of art galleries and curator of art collections, assisted in planning the placement of the sculpture on campus.

An in-depth article about the sculpture, Flack, and Adrienne Lafayette’s life and times will appear in the fall issue of Lafayette magazine. A video that tracks the creation of the bust is also in production.