Paul-Édouard Delabrièrre French, 1829-1912

A pupil of the painter Jean-Baptiste Delestre, Delabrièrre made his debut at the Paris Salon in 1848, where he exhibited seventy works over a period of fifty years. His most prestigious commission was the equestrian group of L'Equitation executed in stone on the façade of the Louvre in 1857. His animalier bronzes range from models of lions, tigers and other African animals, mostly inspired by Barye, to dogs and hunting subjects created more in the manner of Pierre-Jules Mêne.
The present impressive model of A Huntsman with two hounds is typical of Delabrièrre's naturalistic hunting bronzes. The precise observation of the costume and accoutrements, such as the Cors de Chasse and hunting knife, is reminiscent of similar subjects by Mêne.  Delabrièrre also created some quasi-historical hunting groups which demonstrate his superior ability in figurative modelling, including Le Retour de Chasse - époque Louis XV (Salon 1877) and Piqueur de Charles IX (Salon 1881). This confidence in handling both figures and animals is fully demonstrated in this present bronze.

RELATED LITERATURE Lami,  vol.2, pp.140-142