Jan and Joël Martel

private collection, France, until 2006

Paris, Salon des Tuileries, March - June 1932;
Paris, Salon des Médecins, March 1933;
Nantes, Galerie Mignon-Massard, Exposition Martel, December 1934 - January 1935

Joël et Jan Martel Sculpteurs, 1896-1966, Paris, 1996, pp. 141 (image of the present bust in the artists' studio), 181, no. 133

Overall the condition of the bust is good with minor dirt and wear to the surface consistent with age. There are a few small chips to the front and back lower right corners, to the front lower left corner, and to the lower edge of the back. There are a few further small abrasions, including to the edges and corners of the base and to the ears. There is a restoration to the back edge below the neck. There may be some slight restoration to the tip of the nose and to the edges of the base. There is a patch of dark wear to the centre of the forehead. There are remnants of two old labels to the base. Consistent with the material and technique there are very small lacunae throughout the plaster.
"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. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Jan and Joël Martel were twin brothers who collaborated on sculptures through the turn of the century. They specialised in animal subjects, most notably birds, and emphasised curvature of form. The present sculpture is a rare bust representing Professor Henri Vigne, a Doctor and close family friend of the brothers. According to Madame Florence Langer-Martel, the present bust was given to Professor Vigne by her grandfather in thanks for his role at her birth, presiding over the delivery.

Sotheby's would like to thank Madame Florence Langer-Martel for providing a certificate of authentication for the present lot and for kindly assisting with the cataloguing.

 

The Museum Europeu d'Art Modern, Barcelona (MEAM)

The Museu Europeu d’Art Modern (European Museum of Modern Art) is one of Barcelona’s hidden gems, situated in an elegant 18^th-century palace in the heart of the city’s old town, El Born. Founded for the promotion of 20^th and 21^st-century figurative sculpture and painting, the museum houses an outstanding and growing collection of contemporary art. Each year it hosts the Figurativas Painting and Sculpture Awards, which brings together representations of the human form by contemporary artists from across the globe.

The following lots are a carefully curated selection of highlights from the Museum’s collection of 19^thand 20^th-century sculpture. It begins with a series of elegant classicising and Romantic marbles, led by Émmanuel Hannaux’s magisterial Le poète et la sirène (lot 34). These works evidence the belle époque fascination with the idealised human form, combined with wistful and exotic subjects. Affortunato Gori’s sumptuous Oriental Dancer (lot 37) highlights the fin de siècle taste for Orientalist subjects, reflecting major literary works from the time, notably Oscar Wilde’s Salome (1906). Historicism is represented in the very rare and dramatic original terracotta Monument to Beethoven by Théodore Rivière (lot 48).

The divergent movement towards a modernist aesthetic is witnessed in George Minne’s beautifully carved Le petit blesse II (lot 59) which represents the Symbolist desire to depict inner emotions in plastic form. Several works within the sale were created by artists like Minne, who were heavily influenced or trained by Auguste Rodin. The most striking of these is Louis Dejean’s column of swirling and twisting bodies (lot 82), which recalls Rodin’s Gates of Hell. A more classicising modernist aesthetic is seen in Fritz Klimsch’s elegant rendering of Frühling (Spring) (lot 63). This is complemented by Raymond Delamarre’s strong Art Deco David (lot 55), and his totemic torso LaBolognaise (lot 70). However, perhaps the most beautiful of the Art Deco sculptures is the Nude Girl by Jaume Otero i Camps (lot 40), a Catalan artist with native resonances for MEAM. Charles Despiau’s Le Faune (lot 58), seen on the cover of the catalogue, displays a softer classicism in line with the work of Aristide Maillol. Portraiture is represented by François Pompon’s charming Bust of André Leproust, and Jan and Joël Martel’s extraordinary clean-cut image of Professor Henri Vignes.

Each of the works in the catalogue were exhibited in Una mica d’escultura, si us plau! L’escultura europea del segle XX at MEAM, a dedicated exhibition of the Museum’s collection of European 19^thand 20^th-century sculpture.