catalog text
ALBERT ERNEST CARRIER-BELLEUSE “BUST OF ALBRECHT DURER”
Patinated bronze over rouge marble base, inscribed A Carrier to reverse, circa 1900
Item # 806IAS06J
A very powerful antique French sculpture depicting Albrect Dürer, the model is the bust form of a more full profile of Dürer seated - we may even have one of the seated models still available in the gallery, as we had acquired an exceptional pair of seated models depicting Dürer and Rembrandt that are available in the shop at the time of this writing. The present example is a very large representation with intricate detailing of all surfaces, particularly his garment with the fur collar and incised shirt beneath the long falling locks of hair that are perfectly captured first by Carrier-Belleuse in his sculpture, but then also expressed beautifully by the foundryman who finished this piece. It is seated over an original rouge marble base on a thin brass rim.
Albert-Ernest Carrier-Belleuse apprenticed as an engraver at age thirteen beside the goldsmith Fauconnier in Paris, later being accepted into the Ecole des Beaux-Arts based on the endorsement of David d'Angers in 1840. His training became evident in his later work with bronzes, the minute and exceptional attention to small details required as a goldsmith eventually would give depth and life to his romantic sculptures. Exhibiting a keen interest in porcelain, he was eventually named the director of Works of Art at the Sevres porcelain factory in Paris in 1875, many of his works being then interpreted into painted scenes manufactured by the firm. Some of the most treasured works by Carrier-Belleuse is the extensive quantity of busts he produced, these capturing famous and less-than-famous artists, poets, musicians, writers, politicians, financiers and merchants of the time. Nicknamed the "Clodion of the 19th century" both by his contemporaries and by Napoleon III, his romantic treasures were highly regarded and resulted in him being commissioned for many public monuments during the Second Empire. His work is prominently listed and catalogued in most major works on bronze sculptors of the period.
Literature:
- "Art Bronzes", Forrest, p. 472 (biography), also extensive photography of Carrier works
- Bronzes of the 19th Century: Dictionary of Sculptors, Kjellberg, p. 189-92
- Bronzes: Sculptors and Founders, Harold Berman
Measurements: 13” W x app. 7” D x 19 1/2” H
Condition Report:
Original patina with some areas of wear/loss to the top of his hat and beside his lip/beard. Tarnished brass socle and base rim.