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Lot Essay
COMPARATIVE LITERATURE:
P. Cros, Fondation Bemberg: Bronzes de la Renaissance Italienne, Toulouse, 1996, pp. 120 - 121.
Although inspired perhaps by Verrocchio and his followers (it was attributed to Verrocchio in the 1921 Pantheon article and simply as Sienese by Planiscig) this boy appears to be more closely allied to the small bronzes of Barthélemy Prieur than anyone else.
Prieur (1536 - 1611), was among the most important French sculptors of the late 16th and early 17th centuries. His career as a monumental sculptor in bronze is documented by his contribution to the monument for the heart of the Connétable Anne de Montmorency, originally in the church of the Célestins in Paris and now in the Louvre. Two other large scale bronzes, also in the Louvre, originally formed part of the tomb of Christophe de Thou in the church of Saint-André-des-Arts, Paris, while Prieur's mastery of sculpture in marble is revealed by the effigy figures for the tomb of the Connétable and his wife, Madeleine de Savoie. Although Prieur, who was a Huguenot, was obliged to flee from France in 1585, he returned in 1591 and was named Court Sculptor by Henri IV.
Prieur's smaller bronzes are less well-known. Many of them were previously attributed to the anonymous Master of the Genre Figures and have now been convincingly attributed to Prieur. The present figure belongs to a small group that share the same slightly curious physical type and movement. With soft, protruding bellies and a lightly skipping step, they also share the slightly enigmatic facial expressions. However, the crisply modeled and unkempt hair -- and the even more mysterious and calm expression of the present bronze -- does set it apart from these other similar figures.
One of the closest examples to the present bronze is the figure of a boy holding a flute, attributed to Prieur, from the Coke Collection from Jenkyn Place and sold Christie's, London, 17 October 1996, lot 183. Another figure of a striding putto playing the flute, and also attributed to Prieur, was sold Christie's, London, 13 December 1985, lot 132. There is a third figure of a boy, forming part of the group Charity by Prieur and in the Fondation Bemberg, and while rough and unfinished in appearance compared with the present lot, it does bear many of the same characteristics.
Although not original, the base appears to be from at least 1929 as it is illustrated in Planiscig (Op cit., plate XI).
Besides having been in both the Gontard and Goldschmidt collections, this bronze more recently was part of William Coolidge's collection. Certainly one of the most sophisticated and celebrated collectors in New England, he assembled a dazzling group of paintings and objects in Topsfield. Now on view at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, it is almost encyclopedic in scope and includes works by Memling, Gossaert, Andrea del Sarto, Philippe de Champaigne, Canaletto, Corot, Renoir, van Gogh, Signac and Wyeth as well as bronzes by Ferdinando Tacca and other 17th and 18th century decorative arts.
P. Cros, Fondation Bemberg: Bronzes de la Renaissance Italienne, Toulouse, 1996, pp. 120 - 121.
Although inspired perhaps by Verrocchio and his followers (it was attributed to Verrocchio in the 1921 Pantheon article and simply as Sienese by Planiscig) this boy appears to be more closely allied to the small bronzes of Barthélemy Prieur than anyone else.
Prieur (1536 - 1611), was among the most important French sculptors of the late 16th and early 17th centuries. His career as a monumental sculptor in bronze is documented by his contribution to the monument for the heart of the Connétable Anne de Montmorency, originally in the church of the Célestins in Paris and now in the Louvre. Two other large scale bronzes, also in the Louvre, originally formed part of the tomb of Christophe de Thou in the church of Saint-André-des-Arts, Paris, while Prieur's mastery of sculpture in marble is revealed by the effigy figures for the tomb of the Connétable and his wife, Madeleine de Savoie. Although Prieur, who was a Huguenot, was obliged to flee from France in 1585, he returned in 1591 and was named Court Sculptor by Henri IV.
Prieur's smaller bronzes are less well-known. Many of them were previously attributed to the anonymous Master of the Genre Figures and have now been convincingly attributed to Prieur. The present figure belongs to a small group that share the same slightly curious physical type and movement. With soft, protruding bellies and a lightly skipping step, they also share the slightly enigmatic facial expressions. However, the crisply modeled and unkempt hair -- and the even more mysterious and calm expression of the present bronze -- does set it apart from these other similar figures.
One of the closest examples to the present bronze is the figure of a boy holding a flute, attributed to Prieur, from the Coke Collection from Jenkyn Place and sold Christie's, London, 17 October 1996, lot 183. Another figure of a striding putto playing the flute, and also attributed to Prieur, was sold Christie's, London, 13 December 1985, lot 132. There is a third figure of a boy, forming part of the group Charity by Prieur and in the Fondation Bemberg, and while rough and unfinished in appearance compared with the present lot, it does bear many of the same characteristics.
Although not original, the base appears to be from at least 1929 as it is illustrated in Planiscig (Op cit., plate XI).
Besides having been in both the Gontard and Goldschmidt collections, this bronze more recently was part of William Coolidge's collection. Certainly one of the most sophisticated and celebrated collectors in New England, he assembled a dazzling group of paintings and objects in Topsfield. Now on view at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, it is almost encyclopedic in scope and includes works by Memling, Gossaert, Andrea del Sarto, Philippe de Champaigne, Canaletto, Corot, Renoir, van Gogh, Signac and Wyeth as well as bronzes by Ferdinando Tacca and other 17th and 18th century decorative arts.