The Private Collection of Lionel Hastings<br>19th and 20th Century Sculpture and Furniture

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Lot 39
  • 39

Louis-Ernest Barrias

Estimate
50,000 - 70,000 USD
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Description

  • Louis-Ernest Barrias
  • LA NATURE SE DEVOILANT DEVANT LA SCIENCE
  • signed E. Barrias, inscribed Susse Fres Edtr and with the Susse foundry pastille

  • gilt-bronze and gilt silver-coloured metal with copper-gold and yellow-gold patinas, polychromed marble and lapis lazuli scarab, on a mottled black marble

     

  • 39 in.
  • 99 cm

Literature

Romantics to Rodin p.118-120, no.10

A. Bluhm, pp.185-6, no.58

Condition

Extensive wear to patina throughout. The little finger of the left hand has traces of repairs showing two lines of glue, the right hand also with one finger restored showing old trace of glue. Traces of dirt.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Catalogue Note

 La Nature is Barrias's most famous work and is one of the prime examples of the fashion for coloured sculpture so prevalent at the end of the nineteenth century. Its high-brow title only thinly disguises the essence of the composition: a beautiful woman undressing. The deeply charged mood is reflected in many Symbolist paintings, while the general treatment relates to the emerging Art Nouveau. Barrias initially executed the figure in marble, naked except for a long veil down her back. This was exhibited at the Salon in 1863 and acquired by the Ecole de Medecine in Bordeaux. A replica was made for Carl Jacobsen three years later. In 1899, Barrias exhibited a second smaller version, commissioned by the Conservatoire des Arts et Metiers, which combined several different marbles and this is the one on which all subsequent polychrome examples are based. The Susse foundry produced this model in at least five sizes and with a variety of combinations of materials, some entirely of bronze with coloured patinas, some with bronze and ivory, others with marbles and bronze.