Among the almost two hundred lots covering various categories (wine, luxury goods, drawings, paintings), collectors will be able to go home with a bestiary by Barye, Mêne, or Martel... Ladies and gentlemen, the bestiary of Expertisez.com is up for auction!
If the fascination of artists for animals does not date from yesterday, animal sculpture has known its golden age in the 19th century, in the lyrical line of the romantics. Today, it is the rarer 20th century animal sculpture that fetches the best prices.
Indeed, animals are a universal, timeless subject... They first inspired the Romantics, in painting and then in sculpture, fascinated by animals, symbols of a nature that is sometimes harsh, sometimes sensitive. In the 19th century, the representation of animals is fighting, excessive and the style is realistic. Antoine-Louis Barye is undoubtedly the leader in this field. A pioneer, he was noticed at the Paris Salon of 1831 where his bronze "A tiger having surprised a young crocodile devours it" made an impression. He will lead in his wake the leading figures of animal sculpture of his time, namely Rosa Bonheur (1822-1899), Auguste Cain (1821-1894), Christophe Fratin (1801-1864), Emmanuel Frémiet (1824-1910), Pierre-Jules Mêne (1810-1879) and Jules Moigniez (1835-1894)... Horses, hunting dogs, elephants, giraffes, birds, lions, roosters... are the darlings of the latter.
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