Antoine-Louis Barye

Geraldine Rockefeller Dodge, New York, until 1961.

Known as the 'Michelangelo of the Menagerie,' Barye's hyper-realistic bronzes often focused on the animal kingdom, speaking to the 19th century fascination with both the exotic and the then burgeoning science of zoology.

This work captures the realism that came to define Barye's oeuvre. The tiger is shown here vigorously devouring the young gavial, who is writhing in agony.

Barye first conceived of this composition in 1831, and exhibited the plaster model in the Paris Salon held that year, where he received second place for this work, and, with that, launched his career as a sculptor. The contemporaneous critic, Critic Etienne-Jean Delecluze, described the plaster as 'the strongest and most significant work of the entire Salon.' Today, this original model is in the collection of the Detroit Institution of Arts (acc. no. 1983.11).

The artist, along with his studio, made two other reductions of this composition, smaller in size than the original, both of which were met with great success by the public. Given the size of the present work, it can be deduced that it is an edition of the second reduction, which was made to be half the size of the original composition. In their catalogue raisonné on the artist, Michel Poletti and Alain Richarme posit that an estimated forty editions of this reduction were produced during Barye's lifetime, and that posthumous editions seem to be barely more abundant.¹

This sculpture, along with the other works by Barye included in this sale, were formerly in the collection of American socialite and art collector, Geraldine Rockefeller Dodge.

RELATED LITERATURE

P. Fusco and H.W. Janson (eds.), The Romantics to Rodin, exh. cat. Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, 1980, p. 126-8, no. 16;

S. Pivar, The Barye bronzes. A catalogue raisonné, Woodbridge, 1990, p. 158, pl. 61;

M. Poletti and A. Richarme, Barye. Catalogue raisonné des sculptures, Paris, 2000, pp. 204-206.

¹M. Poletti & A. Richarme, Barye Catalogue Raisonné des Sculptures, Paris 2000, p. 205, no. A74 (2).