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Monumental French Empire Life Size Busts - A. Canova browse these categories for related items... All Items: Sculpture: Clay: Pre 1837 VR: item #282483 Please refer to our stock #T0418 when inquiring.
$18,000 |
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A Monumental pair of French Empire Terracotta sculpted life size busts and or Herms. French, circa: 1812. Attributed to Antonio Canova (1757-1822) Italian born, active in Paris and London. Measuring: Each : 22.5" high and weighing 150+ Pounds. Dated 1812. Each bust hand sculpted in Terracotta is a solid bust and done in the form of a Herm. The portraits are most probably two important public figures of the time and or from a Noble family. _____________________________________________________________________ Literature: Antonio Canova (1757-1822). Called "the supreme minister of beauty " and "a unique and truly divine man " by contemporaries, Antonio Canova was considered the greatest sculptor of his time. Despite his lasting reputation as a champion of Neoclassicism, Canova's earliest works displayed a late Baroque or Rococo sensibility that was appealing to his first patrons, nobility from his native Venice. During his first and second visits to Rome in 1779 and 1781, Canova reached a turning point. He studied antiquities, visited the grand studios of the Roman restorers Bartolomeo Cavaceppi and Francesco Antonio Franzoni, and came under the influence of the English Neoclassicist Gavin Hamilton. In a competition organized by the Venetian aristocrat Don Abbondio Rezzonico, Canova produced his statuette of Apollo Crowning Himself, a work inspired by ancient art of a physically idealized and emotionally detached figure. This work came to define the Neoclassical style. The success of the Apollo enabled the young sculptor to obtain a block of marble for his next work on a large scale, Theseus and the Minotaur, which established his reputation. From the moment of its completion, it was the talk of Rome. From then until his death, Canova's renown grew throughout Europe. _____________________________________________________________________ Each bust is fired Terracotta which as a result makes it heavier than marble and much stronger and dense. The overall condition is good with only minor losses to corners. Original patina though out. |
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