19th & 20th Century Sculpture
19th & 20th Century Sculpture
Rudolf Maison
Wotan
Lot Closed
July 14, 11:04 AM GMT
Estimate
20,000 - 30,000 GBP
Lot Details
Description
Rudolf Maison
German
1854 - 1904
Wotan
signed: R. Maison. and with runic inscriptions
Siena marble
99cm., 39in.
Sale of the artist's estate, Hugo Helbing, Munich, 28 April 1913, lot 5;
Heinrich Morgenstern (1869-1944), Fürth, Germany (lost as a result of Nazi persecution);
Prof. Paul Oertmann, Göttingen;
Städtisches Museum, Göttingen (bequest of the above on his death, May 22, 1938);
restituted to the heirs of Heinrich Morgenstern, 2021
K. Geiger and S. Tausche (eds.), Rudolf Maison (1854-1904), Regensburg - München - Berlin, exh. cat. Historisches Museum der Stadt Regensburg, 2016, p. 255, no. 62.1
Modelled in 1900, Rudolf Maison’s dramatic representation of Wotan is considered the sculptor’s late masterpiece. The all-powerful god of death and war from Norse mythology is seated on his throne with outstretched arms, flanked by his ravens Hugin and Munin. His left hand is clenched in a fist, and from his lowered head his left eye gazes forward in an intense stare. Both the spelling of the god’s name – Wotan rather than Odin – and the 'poignantly great' conception of the figure clearly refer to Wagner’s Götterdämmerung, in which the god is characterised as a fatalist and resigned human being, rather than an infallible ruling deity. Maison incorporated a wealth of Norse imagery into the decoration of the throne; the interlaced ornament, figural drawings depicting the Norns, Ragnarok and Valhalla, and runic inscriptions recounting Scandinavian lore indicate a knowledge of the Gotland picture stones that fascinated scholars and artists in the 19th century. Exhibited at the Munich Glaspalast in 1901, Wotan was awarded a gold medal, and the artist is known to have held the model in great personal esteem.
The original plaster model of Wotan, patinated to mimic yellow marble, is housed in the Museen der Stadt Regensburg. Several bronze versions were made, but only reductions of the large-scale model are known to be in existence. Sold as part of Rudolf Maison’s estate in 1913, the present sculpture is a unique execution in Siena marble, which corresponds to the size of the plaster model. Long housed in the Städtisches Museum, Göttingen, the present marble was published as ‘untraced’ in a recent exhibition catalogue dedicated to the sculptor (op. cit.). Its appearance at auction marks a major rediscovery in Maison’s oeuvre.
Born in Regensburg, the self-taught Rudolf Maison opened his studio in Munich in 1879. Specialising in mythological, biblical and historical subjects, he executed numerous prestigious commissions for buildings and monuments across Germany. In 1892, Maison became a co-founder of the Munich Secession, having befriended Franz von Stuck two years previously. Both artists went on to receive considerable acclaim on an international level.
The original plaster model of Wotan, patinated to mimic yellow marble, is housed in the Museen der Stadt Regensburg. Several bronze versions were made, but only reductions of the large-scale model are known to be in existence. Sold as part of Rudolf Maison’s estate in 1913, the present sculpture is a unique execution in Siena marble, which corresponds to the size of the plaster model. Long housed in the Städtisches Museum, Göttingen, the present marble was published as ‘untraced’ in a recent exhibition catalogue dedicated to the sculptor (op. cit.). Its appearance at auction marks a major rediscovery in Maison’s oeuvre.
Born in Regensburg, the self-taught Rudolf Maison opened his studio in Munich in 1879. Specialising in mythological, biblical and historical subjects, he executed numerous prestigious commissions for buildings and monuments across Germany. In 1892, Maison became a co-founder of the Munich Secession, having befriended Franz von Stuck two years previously. Both artists went on to receive considerable acclaim on an international level.