Mediartrade ha ritenuto corretto e opportuno nei confronti dei propri clienti sospendere il lotto dalla vendita. Su questo lotto non vengono considerate offerte in Pre asta. Si ringrazia il Museo Medardo Rosso .
Mediartrade ha ritenuto corretto e opportuno nei confronti dei propri clienti sospendere il lotto dalla vendita. Su questo lotto non vengono considerate offerte in Pre asta. Si ringrazia il Museo Medardo Rosso .
Mediartrade ha ritenuto corretto e opportuno nei confronti dei propri clienti sospendere il lotto dalla vendita. Su questo lotto non vengono considerate offerte in Pre asta. Si ringrazia il Museo Medardo Rosso .
firma incisa alla base del bronzo I soggetti infantili sono tra i più amati da Medardo. Testa di bimbo è un’opera unica nel suo genere. L’esecuzione si colloca poco prima del suo trasferimento a Parigi tra il 1887 e il 1889, quando l’artista soggiornava a Milano in un clima ancora tardo scapigliato. Si tratta di un bronzo concavo al retro, scolpito solo di fronte: il volto del bimbo emerge da una materia dura ma plasmata, lucidata, ammorbidita, come animata da sapiente maestria, particolarità questa che lo colloca nello spazio con piglio dirompente. Con questa visione frontale dell’opera, Medardo trasforma la sua classica tangibilità a tutto tondo. La materialità si dissolve e l’osservatore diventa creatore dell’immagine che osserva: spostando il punto di vista, i giochi di luce e le ombre ne cambiano la percezione. Per completare il bronzo un frammento di architettura in marmo sagomato fa da base di sostegno, formando un unico corpo col ritratto, come fosse parte integrante e necessaria. Medardo è ribelle, anticonformista, allergico a regole e canoni imposti. Il clima milanese gli sta stretto ma anche Parigi e gli stilemi francesi di allora non gli corrispondono. Rosso è lontano anche dagli impressionisti francesi, più interessati al fenomeno ottico e alla scomposizione del colore, ma sperimenta e precorre nuovi linguaggi espressivi. Con la sua opera può essere considerato il precursore di un mondo la cui tangibilità è al tempo stesso illusoria e sfuggente. Sfuggente nei suoi significati più profondi, nelle sue vere ragioni d’essere, la cui unica vera certezza è la sua impermanenza. Michela Scotti
(Torino 1858 - Milano 1928) "Ritratto di bambino" scultura in terracotta (h cm 24) (difetti) Bibliografia P. Mola, F. Vitucci, "Medardo Rosso. Catalogo ragionato della scultura", Skira, Milano, 2009, III, 22, p. 358 Opera accompagnata da certificato di autenticità rilasciato dalla dott.ssa Paola Mola in data 24.7.2009
(Torino 1858 - Milano 1928) "Coppia di ritratti raffiguranti Coniugi Trolli" carboncino su carta (cm 75x59) Firmati in basso a sinistra In cornice (difetti)
Rosso, Medardo - Rosso, Medardo. Due lettere autografe firmate, in totale 3 pagine in 8°, una firmata ‘Medardo’, l’altra ‘Rosso’, entrambe senza data, una busta autografa. In una parla di un avvocato Garbagni e nell’altra rimprovera il corrispondente di averlo lasciato senza notizie. (2)
Medardo Rosso (Torino 1858 - Milano 1928) copia da Lo scugnizzo Bronzo Firmato M. Rosso sulla spalla 35 x 15 x 15 cm Medardo Rosso (Turin 1858 - Milan 1928) copia da Gavroche Bronze Signed M. Rosso on the shoulder 35 x 15 x 15 cm
Scultura in gesso dipinto di color grigio-bruno, cm. 32,4 (altezza). Firma sul retro. Il busto è montato su una base di recupero in marmo verde, cm. 13. Altezza complessiva cm. 47,8. Expertise di Paola Mola in data 16 febbraio 2022. L'opera finora inedita è inserita nel Catalogo generale delle sculture di Rosso conservato presso l'Archivio del Museo Rosso (Aggiornamento del "Catalogo Ragionato.." edito del 2009. Bibliografia di riferimento: 2009, P. Mola, F. Vittucci, Medardo Rosso, Catalogo ragionato della scultura, Skira, Milano, pp. 66-73, 237-238, 351. "[...] Ritengo quest'opera una seconda versione della Ruffiana, un'opera originale finita e personalmente montata da Rosso su un basamento che è parte dell'opera. Più precisamente ritengo questo un lavoro di passaggio tra la Ruffiana ancora a tutto tondo e il Sagrestano aperto dietro, che a sua volta è il precedente di quell'apice degli anni milanesi cui Rosso giunge con la Portinaia (1883)". Estratto dall'Expertise di Paola Mola.
Scultura in bronzo Altezza: cm 62,5 La proprietà e provenienza di questo bronzetto, accreditata da documentazione in nostro possesso, permette di affermare l’originaria appartenenza alla collezione dell’industriale e mecenate Pietro Curletti (1840-1913), committente a Rosso anche nel momento funebre La Riconoscenza (1883). In data imprecisabile intorno al 1883 Curletti acquistò direttamente da Rosso un bronzo degli Innamorati. Sappiamo da alcune lettere di Alberto Grubicy (da Milano) a Rosso (a Parigi) che nel 1900 Curletti fece eseguire dal fonditore Strada di Milano 6 bronzi degli Innamorati dall’originale in suo possesso (autografi a Barzio, Archivio Museo Rosso). Paola Mola
MEDARDO ROSSO 1858 Turin - 1928 Mailand Der Strassensänger (Posthumer Guss nach dem Modell von 1882) Bronze, braun patiniert, grüner Marmor. Ges.- H. 30,5 cm, H. 28 cm (Figur). Verso bezeichnet 'Rosso Milano'. Über einem rechteckigen Sockel gleichförmige Plinthe mit der ganzfigurigen Darstellung eines Mannes, einen langen Mantel tragend. Sockel besch. und lose, min. Verluste der Patina.
MEDARDO ROSSO (1858 - 1928) sculptuur in was : "Jonge vrouw in gedachten verzonken" - hoogte : 21,5 cm - ca 1900/20 met monogram "M (R ?)" / toegeschreven aan / omgeving van early 20th Cent. wax sculpture - with a monogram "M (R ?)" /attributed to/cercle of Medardo Rosso
KOPF EINES KINDES Höhe: 26 cm. Höhe inkl. Sockel: 35 cm. An der Rückseite mitgegossene Signatur. Gold glänzender Bronzeguss, der Kopf leicht nach links geneigt mit Büstenansatz und verträumtem Antlitz. Mit poliertem Marmorsockel. Literatur: Luciano Caramel, Arte moderna, Cataloghi: Medardo Rosso, Skira 2004. (1221262) (11)
D'après Medardo ROSSO (1858-1928) L'enfant juif Bronze à patine brune nuancée. Signé et numéroté 3/15 Cachet du fondeur Valsuani vers 1970-1980. H. 26 cm
Medardo ROSSO 1858 - 1928 Ecce Puer Bronze à patine brune Hauteur: 44 cm Conçu en 1906, fonte posthume Provenance : Collection Luigi Prada, Milan Collection Ivanoe Fraizzoli, Milan Collection Renato Caglioni, Milan Bibliographie : P. Mola, F. Vittucci, Medardo Rosso – Catalogo ragionato della scultura, Skira, Museo Medardo Rosso, Milan, 2009, p.214 à 219, 329 à 334, 357 et 367 (cires et autres exemplaires en bronze) Commentaire : Une photo de l'oeuvre signée et datée au dos par Paola Mola sera remise à l'acquéreur. Bronze with brown patina Estimation 15 000 - 20 000 €
Medardo ROSSO 1858 - 1928 Enfant au soleil Bronze à patine brune Signé "MRosso" Hauteur: 33,5 cm Conçu en 1891-1892, fonte posthume Provenance : Collection Luigi Prada, Milan Collection Ivanoe Fraizzoli, Milan Collection Renato Caglioni, Milan Bibliographie : P. Mola, F. Vittucci, Medardo Rosso – Catalogo ragionato della scultura, Skira, Museo Medardo Rosso, Milan, 2009, p.136 à 139, 286 à 290 et 355 (cires et autres exemplaires en bronze) Commentaire : Une photo de l'oeuvre signée et datée au dos par Paola Mola sera remise à l'acquéreur. Bronze with brown patina ; signed Estimation 15 000 - 20 000 €
MEDARDO ROSSO Turin, 1858 - Milan, 1928 Lovers under the streetlight Bronze sculpture, 51,5 x 26 x 28 cm LITERATURE: Prima Quadriennale d'Arte Nazionale, 1931, p. 150; Maselli, 1938, p. 28; Bucarelli, 1951, p. 61; Bucarelli, 1973, p. 161; Bellonzi, 1978, nn. 1178-1179; Caramel, 2004, pp. 80-84; Di Majo, 2006, p. 152 n. 4.34
MEDARDO ROSSO GAVROCHE bronzo, cm 31x22x23, con la base h cm 46 realizzato tra gli anni Dieci e Venti del Novecento L'opera è accompagnata da autentica di Luciano Caramel su fotografia in data 17 febbraio 2005 Provenienza: Collezione privata, Parigi Collezione privata, Milano Opera giovanile dell'artista ideata nel 1881-1882, il Gavroche, noto anche come il Birichino, avrà grande fortuna nella produzione di Medardo Rosso. L'opera che oggi presentiamo è una fusione realizzata tra gli anni Dieci e Venti del Novecento
*MEDARDO ROSSO (ITALIAN, 1858-1928): ‘PETITE RIEUSE’ A wax over plaster head of a laughing woman Subject conceived in 1890, probably a posthumous cast by the sculptor’s son, Francesco Rosso and cast from the original plaster model (now in the Private Collection of the Rosso heirs, Milan). Inscribed ‘Medardo Rosso’ ‘Danila Rosso Parravicini’ on the plaster interior. Sold together with the original letter of authentication from Danila Rosso Parravicini and a copy of the original exhibition catalogue from the ‘Pioneers of Modern Sculpture’ exhibition at the Hayward Gallery, 1973, and the exhibition catalogue from the 2003 Kunstmuseum Winterthur exhibition, mounted on a later wooden plinth, (the plinth 20cm high x 35cm wide) 34cm x 21cm x 21cm £70,000 – 100,000 * Please note that this lot is subject to import VAT at a preferential rate of 5% on the Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on the Buyer’s Premium. Please see our terms and conditions for further information. WE ARE GRATEFUL TO THE MEDARDO ROSSO MUSEUM, BARZIO FOR THEIR ASSISTANCE WITH RESEARCHING AND CATALOGUING THIS WORK. PROVENANCE Sold by the granddaughter of Medardo Rosso, Danila Rosso Parravicini on 17th August 1965 to Philip Granville of Lord’s Gallery, London. Purchased by the present owner from Phillips, London, 5 February 2001, lot 24. EXHIBITED ‘Pioneers of Modern Sculpture’, Arts Council of Great Britain, Hayward Gallery, London, 20 July – 23 September 1973, No. 181. ‘Medardo Rosso’, Kunstmuseum Winterthur, 6 September – 23 November 2003, No. 25. ‘Medardo Rosso’, Stiftung Wilhelm Lehmbruck Museum Centre for International Sculpture, Duisburg, 14 December – 28 March 2004. LITERATURE ‘Pioneers of Modern Sculpture’ Exhibition Catalogue, Arts Council of Great Britain, 1973, p.145. (A copy to be sold with the sculpture) ‘Medardo Rosso’ Kunstmuseum Winterthur & Stiftung Wilhelm-Lehmbruck-Museum, Centre for International Sculpture Exhibition Catalogue, No. 25, full page illustration, p. 100. (A copy to be sold with the sculpture). M. Fagioli, ‘Medardo Rosso Catalogue of the Sculptures’, Opus Libri, 1993, No. 30. Paola Mola & Fabio Vittucci, ‘Medardo Rosso Catalogo ragionato della scultura’, Museo Medardo Rosso, Skira, 2009, p. 126-131, p. 277-283, p. 127 illustrates a photograph circa 1907 of a photograph by Rosso of 1901, showing a wax cast of the Petite Rieuse. Dr Sharon Hecker, ‘A Moment’s Monument, Medardo Rosso and the International Origins of Modern Sculpture’, University of California Press, 2017, p. 137-139. Figure 52 illustrates an original photograph by Rosso of a wax cast of the Petite Rieuse. Margaret Scolari Barr, ‘Medardo Rosso’, New York, 1963, p.34-36. Page 35 illustrates a wax cast of the Petite Rieuse which is listed as being in the Medardo Rosso Museum, Barzio. Page 36 illustrates a contemporary photograph of Rosso in his Paris studio modelling the Petite Rieuse. F. Stocchi ‘Medardo Rosso’, Giunti, 2015. p. 40 illustrates a photograph circa 1902 of a wax cast of Petite Rieuse. ‘Medardo Rosso Sight Unseen and his Encounters with London’, Galerie Thaddaeus Ropac, exhibition catalogue, p.54-55. p. 55 illustrates a photograph of the wax Petite Rieuse circa 1902, p. 27 shows another photograph of a wax cast of the Petite Rieuse in a rectangular glazed case, dating from the early 1890’s and in situ in Medardo Rosso’s studio. This exhibition included a bronze cast of the same subject. OTHER KNOWN CASTS OF ‘PETITE RIEUSE’ The following known examples cast in wax are listed in the Catalogue Raisonnée by P. Mola & F. Vittucci: Lifetime casts: Galleria Internazionale d’Arte Moderna di Ca’ Pesaro, Venice, inv. 554 National Gallery of Australia, Canberra, inv. 80.1680 Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Moderna, Rome, inv.9072 Private Collection, Milan. Original casts without documented lifetime provenance: Kroller-Muller Museum, Otterlo, Netherlands, inv. 170-20 Richard Gray Gallery, Chicago / New York. Private Collection, previously Collection Panizzuti, now Collection Gianni Porta, Milan. Posthumous casts, legally cast from the original plaster model by Francesco Rosso: 1. Medardo Rosso Museum, Barzio, Italy. A bronze cast of Petite Rieuse is now in the Musee Rodin, Paris. This cast was given to Rodin by Rosso when they first met in 1893 in exchange for Rodin’s ‘Torso’. This important sculpture belongs to the above rarefied group of casts that are in major museums throughout the world. The work was sold by Medardo Rosso’s granddaughter Danila Rosso Parravicini on 17th August 1965 to the important British art dealer Philip Leonard Granville, director of Lords Gallery in St John’s Wood, London. Rosso’s granddaughter provided a written certificate of authenticity for the work, which she apparently believed at the time to be a life time cast by her grandfather. Three other works were sold at the same time and are listed in the document, they are: Bambino Ebreo, Grande Rieuse and Ecce Puer. The Grande Rieuse (Laughing Woman, large version) listed above is now in the permanent collection of the Tate Gallery, London, inv. T04846. It is catalogued as a posthumous cast, probably made during the 1950’s and was also inscribed by the artist’s granddaughter ‘Danila Rosso Parravicini’ on the plaster surface. It was purchased from Philip Granville of Lord’s Gallery (Grant-in-Aid) with assistance from the Friends of the Tate Gallery 1986. The Grande Rieuse was, like the Petite Rieuse, exhibited in the 1973 Hayward Gallery show ‘Pioneers of Modern Sculpture’ (No. 182, repr. p.72, as ‘Large Laughing Figure (Grande Rieuse)’, dated 1891). When purchased by the Tate Gallery in 1986, Grande Rieuse was thought to date from the 1890s. This impression was supported by the bill of sale, signed by the artist’s granddaughter, which stated that this and the other works including Petite Rieuse, sold to the London dealer Philip Granville, were ‘authentic’ Rossos, and had been signed by her. However, on 31st March 1989, the Medardo Rosso expert, Luciano Caramel, examined the cast at the Tate Gallery and came to the conclusion that the sculpture was a posthumous cast from the 1950's. It is only in relatively recent years that scholarly research has shown that some of the sculptures that were previously thought to have been lifetime casts made by the artist were in fact authorised casts made legally after his death by his son Francesco, from the sculptor’s original plaster models. Dr Sharon Hecker’s fascinating article ‘The afterlife of sculptures: posthumous casts and the case of Medardo Rosso’ (Journal of Art Historiography Number 16 June 2017) discusses this in some depth, and uses the Tate’s Grande Rieuse as her main example. Paola Mola and Fabio Vittucci’s scholarly work on the sculptor’s oeuvre has validated these concerns, and in their 2009 catalogue raisonné they divided the known works into those that had lifetime provenance and those that were un-documented or thought to have been cast by Francesco Rosso, as listed at the start of this footnote. Casts by Francesco Rosso are in museums throughout the world, including the Medardo Rosso Museum, Barzio which has a wax head of Petite Rieuse cast by Francesco (see notes above). A wax over plaster cast of ‘Bambina Ridente’, also conceived in 1890 but cast by Francesco Rosso from the artist’s original plaster model was sold at Chiswick Auctions, London, 12th September 2018, lot 157, £225,000 (including premium). For further information please see www.chiswickauctions.com/auction/
MEDARDO ROSSO (1858-1928) Gavroche bronzo a patina scura su base in marmo verde antico f.to M.Rosso h.tot.cm.46 versione proveniente dalla collezione Angelo Motta
MEDARDO ROSSO (ITALIAN, 1858-1928): ‘BAMBINA RIDENTE’ (BAMBINA CHE RIDE) A wax over plaster head of a laughing girl Subject conceived in 1890, probably cast by the sculptor’s son, Francesco Rosso, from the original plaster model the head 26.5cm high excluding base, the base 33.5cm x 27cm x 5cm PROVENANCE: Clotilde Longoni Rosso, Milan (the artist's daughter-in-law) Louis Pollock, owner of the Peridot Gallery, New York. Acquired directly from Clotilde Longoni Rosso in 1959. The original invoice is included in the sale. Thence by descent to the present owner. EXHIBITED New York, Peridot Gallery, The First Exhibition in America of Sculpture by Medardo Rosso, 1959-60, no. 6, illustrated in the catalogue (a copy is included in the sale). LITERATURE Margaret Scolari Barr, ‘Medardo Rosso’, New York, 1963, illustrates this cast on page 33. Paola Mola & Fabio Vittucci, ‘Medardo Rosso Catalogo ragionato della scultura’, Museo Medardo Rosso, Skira, 2009. Dr Sharon Hecker, ‘A Moment’s Monument, Medardo Rosso and the International Origins of Modern Sculpture’, University of California Press, 2017, p.131 illustrates a photograph by Medardo Rosso of this model of a cast of the same subject. OTHER KNOWN CASTS OF ‘BAMBINA RIDENTE’ The following known examples cast in wax are listed in the Catalogue Raisonnée by P. Mola & F. Vittucci: Lifetime casts: 1. Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Moderna Rome, inv. 2026. 2. Centro de arte Reina Sofia, Madrid. Casts without documented lifetime provenance and those cast legally from the original plaster model by Francesco Rosso: 1. Museo Medardo Rosso, Barzio. 2. Pinacoteca Nazionale di Brera, Milan. 3. Civica Galleria d’Arte Moderna, Milan, inv. 7356, gifted by Francesco Rosso in 1953. 4. Nationalmuseum, Stockholm, inv. NM SK 2122 (1972). We are grateful to Dr Sharon Hecker and the Museo Medardo Rosso for assistance with researching and cataloguing this work. This important sculpture belongs to the above rariefied group of casts that are in major museums throughout Europe. It was sold by Medardo’s Rosso’s daughter-in-law Clotilde Longoni Rosso in 1959 to the American art dealer Louis Pollock, owner of the Peridot Gallery, New York. At the same time she also sold two other Medardo Rosso works which are on the same invoice, ‘L'Eta d'oro’ (Golden Age) and ‘Bookmaker’ which also both appeared in the Peridot Gallery exhibition. ‘L’Eta d’oro’ was subsequently sold at Sotheby’s London, on 9th February 2005 as lot 439 for £254,400. Interestingly it was mounted on an almost identical plinth to the present head, on what looks to be the same wood, with rounded corners and a recessed border about 1cm from the outer edge. The other work on the original invoice is ‘Bookmaker’, which the Museum of Modern Art in New York purchased direct from the Peridot Gallery. (Inv. No. 673.1959). They currently describe the provenance as follows: 1894 - 1928, Medardo Rosso. ? - 1959, Clothilde Longoni Rosso, Milan (the artist's daughter-in-law), probably inherited from the artist or the artist's son Francesco Rosso. October 1959, The Museum of Modern Art, New York, purchased through the Peridot Gallery, New York. The three works featured in The First Exhibition in America of Sculpture by Medardo Rosso at the Peridot Gallery and are all in the exhibition catalogue, a copy is included in the sale along with the original invoice and a letter from Clotilde Longoni Rosso authenticating the work. The present wax head is illustrated in Margaret Scolari Barr’s seminal work ‘Medardo Rosso’, (Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 1963) page 33, and a photograph of the ‘Bookmaker’ featured on the front cover. Barr describes the head thus: “Certainly the ‘Little Girl Laughing’ is a work that “everyone can understand”. The way versions are so shiny they suggest a child’s face well scrubbed. The principle of the single point of view, so obvious in the Rouart, is abandoned. The head stands free and can be seen from three sides. Even the back, though summarily treated, does not deny the volume of the skull.” It is only in relatively recent years that scholarly research has shown that some of the sculptures thought to have been lifetime casts made by the artist were in fact authorised casts made legally after his death by his son Francesco, from the sculptor’s original plaster models. Dr Sharon Hecker’s fascinating article ‘The afterlife of sculptures: posthumous casts and the case of Medardo Rosso’ (Journal of Art Historiography Number 16 June 2017) discusses this in some depth, and uses the wax sculpture ‘Grande Riseuse’ in the Tate Gallery (inv. No. T04846) as her main example. ‘Grande Riseuse’ was thought to be a lifetime cast and had provenance going back to the Rosso family in the 1960’s, but following examination by Luciano Caramel, an Italian expert on Rosso and by the then-Chief Conservator of Sculpture, Derek Pullen in 1989; it is now considered to be a posthumous cast. In recent years, Paola Mola and Fabio Vittucci’s scholarly work on the sculptor’s oeuvre has validated these concerns, and in their 2007 catalogue raisonnée they divided the known works into those that had lifetime provenance and those that were un-documented or thought to have been cast by Francesco Rosso, as listed at the start of this footnote. Dr Hecker states in her article “Rosso’s materials, casting processes, and his ideas about his legacy are not fully understood. Whereas the art market and the law demand from experts a clear answer to the question of authenticity and attribution, I believe that Rosso’s case cannot be limited to a binary question, ‘whether a work is genuine or fake, either by the artist in question or not by him’. A more nuanced approach is necessary.” (p2. Opp. Cit.) Other posthumous casts of Rosso’s works feature in museums throughout the world, for example the wax head ‘Ecce Puer’ (Behold the Boy) now in the Hirschhorn, Washington (inv. No. 66.4411), and the other ‘Bambina Ridente’ casts that are in the Civica Galleria d’Arte Moderna, Milan, and the Nationalmuseum, Stockholm.
Bronzo dorato, marmo nero Statua: 25,5x20,5x14 cm Base: 7,3x16,7x16,7 cm Si tratta di una replica, con varianti e probabilmente postuma, della celebre scultura raffigurante un "Bambino malato", di cui a partire dal 1893 l'artista realizzò molteplici versioni, sia in cera (per esempio, l'esemplare già in collezione Lydia Winston Malbin, apparso a Sotheby's, New York il 16 maggio 1990, l. 14) sia in bronzo (come la versione esposta alla Galleria Nazionale d'arte Moderna), sia in gesso (ne esiste almeno una, conservata presso il Museo Medardo Rosso, Barzio, Lecco). Sembra che Medardo Rosso abbia concepito l'opera dopo la degenza presso un ospedale di Parigi.
MEDARDO ROSSO (D'APRES) (1858-1928) BAMBINO MALATO Bronze Signé "Medardo Rosso" à la base 26 x 20 x 14 cm - 10.2 x 7.8 x 5.5 in. Signed "Medardo Rosso" on the base, bronze
MEDARDO ROSSO (Turin 1858-1928 Milan) Esquisses Suite de 2 dessins au fusain et d 1 lavis sur papier Les dessins monogrammés M.R. en bas à droite Provenance de la Collection Sommaruga Rassemblées sous verre dans un seule encadrement Dimensions : 19 x 8, 21 x 14, 13,5 x 21 cm
Bambino ebreo da Medardo Rosso (Torino 1858 - Milano 1928) Reca firma sulla spalla sinistra: Rosso. Su piedistallo in marmo scuro, alt. cm 30 Jewish child by Medardo Rosso (Turin 1858 - Milan 1928)
Unsigned. With an expertise by Luciano Caramel, Paris, dated 23 February 2005; with an expertise and a confirmation of authenticity by Paola Mola, Milan, dated 15 February 2014 on presentation of the original The bronze cast of the Civica Galleria d'Arte Moderna in Milan was the first bronze version made from the original plaster model of Medardo Rosso's work known as "Sagrestano" or "Lo Scaccino", which is preserved in the Museo Rosso, Barzio (cf. Mola/Vittucci 1.8a and 1.8b). Compared to other motifs of the artist, there are scarcely any formal variations on the "Sagrestano", which also became known as "L'Ivrogne" in Paris. Only few casts have become known. In the final years of the 19th and in the early 20th century the fame of the Italian sculptor Medardo Rosso was comparable to that of Auguste Rodin. "The era of the block which one can walk around is gone forever" wrote Rosso. "My block is to be viewed like a picture, from a specific point, at a certain optical distance, where it reassembles itself with the help of the viewer's retina. It takes on its value, its quality and its beauty only when your eye beholds it in its own light." (cited in: Giovanni Lista, Die Ursprünge des 'italienischen Impressionismus' von Medardo Rosso, in: exhib. cat. Winterthur/Duisburg, op. cit., p. 48) "At the time when Medardo Rosso decided to move to Paris in 1889, he had achieved complete clarity regarding his ideas. He wanted to demonstrate that he was the founder of 'Impressionist sculpture' or of a new art founded on the 'impression'. 'In the name of the impression ... the art of sculpture was 'to be freed from its eternal conventions'. He was thus the first Italian artist who went to Paris not in order to learn something, but in order to help establish the triumph of a previously unknown expression of modern art from the new Italy, being its only representative of international standing." (Giovanni Lista, ibid., p. 48/49) Height 34.5 cm
ROSSO, MEDARDO 1858 Turin - 1928 Milano San Francesco (after Donatello). 1892/1893. Bronze, dark-brown patinated. 27 x 17 x 20 cm. On dark red stone base.Rosso, Medardo 1858 Turin - 1928 Mailand San Francesco (nach Donatello) 1892/1893. Bronze, dunkelbraun patiniert. 27 x 17 x 20cm. Auf dunkelrotem Steinsockel. Wir danken Frau Paola Mola und Frau Birgit Brunk für die wissenschaftliche Unterstützung.Provenienz: Sammlung Henri Rouart, ParisAusstellungen:Museo di Arte Moderna e Contemporanea di Trento e Rovereto (MART), Trient 2004Galleria Civica d'Arte Moderne e Contemporanea di Torino (GAM), Turin 2004Literatur: Mola, Paola: Vergini fauni e senatori. Sui modelli per le copie dall'antico al Museo Rosso di Barzio, in: "Atti del convegno internazionale sulle gipsoteche", Fondazione Canova, Symposium Mai 2012, Treviso 2014, S. 259-286Ausst.-Kat. Medardo Rosso, le origini della scultura moderna, Museo di Arte Moderna e Contemporanea di Trento e Rovereto (MART) 2004, S. 183Lista, Giovanni: Medardo Rosso. Scultura e fotografia, Mailand 2003, Abb. 78-80Brunk, Birgit: Plstiken für Sehende. Der 'punto di vista unico', eine lebenslange Suche nach der Wahrheit, in: Ausst.-Kat. Medardo Rosso, Kunstmuseum Winterthur/Wilhelm Lehmbruck Museum Duisburg 2003/2004, S. 12-38Die vorliegende Bronze stammt aus der Sammlung Henri Rouarts, einer außergewöhnlichen Sammlerpersönlichkeit im späten Paris des 19. Jahrhunderts. Rouarts wirtschaftlicher Erfolg als Ingenieur und Unternehmer erlaubte es ihm nicht nur, sich selbst als Maler zu verwirklichen sondern auch, eine beachtliche Sammlung seiner Zeitgenossen zusammenzutragen. Von nahezu jedem bedeutenden Maler seiner Generation besaß er Gemälde und Zeichnungen: Gaugin, van Gogh, Cézanne, Degas, Monet , Renoir, Courbet, Corot - um nur einige zu nennen. Henri Rouart lernt Rosso im Jahr 1889 über den Galeristen Georges Thomas kennen und wird in den darauffolgenden Jahren zu einem wichtigen Mäzen Rossos. Er erwirbt nicht nur dessen Werke sondern stellt ihm auch Wohn- und Arbeitsraum zur Verfügung. Louis Rouart, der Sohn von Henri, beschreibt in seinen Erinnerungen, dass Henri Rouart den kranken Medardo Rosso 1889 im Pariser Hôpital Laborisière besucht habe, anschließend für ihn sorgen lies und ihm sein Fabrikgebäude am Boulevard Voltaire zur Verfügung stellte. Dort konnte Medardo Rosso ungestört arbeiten und Bronzen gießen. Vermutlich hat Rosso auch die Skulptur des Hl. Franz von Assisi im Atelier am Boulevard Voltaire eigenhändig gegossen. Das Abbild des Franz von Assisi nach Donatello gehört zu der Serie der sogenannten "pezzi di paragone", die Rosso überwiegend in den 1890er Jahren schuf. Im Sinne einer Selbstschulung des vergleichenden Betrachtens bildete er in dieser Werkgruppe zahlreiche berühmte Werke, von der Antike bis zum Barock, in unterschiedlichen Größen und Materialien nach, bzw. kombiniert sie teilweise mit eigenen Versatzstücken. Wichtig ist ihm dabei, die Vielfalt seines künstlerischen Formvokabulars zu beweisen, in dem er seine eigenen Formfindungen den "pezzi di paragone" gegenüberstellt. Die Qualität seiner Nachbildungen war so überzeugend, dass sogar das Victoria & Albert Museum in London im Jahre 1896 zwei Werke ankaufte. Die Motivation für diese Werkserie mag mannigfaltig gewesen sein: sicherlich schuf Rosso sie nicht nur, weil er Vergnügen daran hatte, sondern auch, weil er mit den "pezzi di paragone" seine außergewöhnlichen bildhauerischen Fähigkeiten und seine exzellente Gusstechnik unter Beweis stellen konnte und mit ihren Verkäufen seine eigene künstlerische Weiterentwicklung vorantreiben konnte.Die Auseinandersetzung mit den großen Meistern der Renaissance gehörte für Rosso und seine Zeitgenossen, die Scapigliati, zum kulturellen Klima ihrer Zeit. Die Pläne zur Rekonstruktion des Hauptaltars in der Grabkirche in Padua sowie die große Florentiner "Esposizione Donatelliani" im Jahr 1887 waren sicherlich der Auslöser für Rossos Nachbildung des Kopfes der Statue des Hl. Franz von Assisi. Das non finito, welches Donatellos Skulpturen laut Vasari "mehr skizziert als vollendet" erscheinen lässt, ist eine der unumstößlichen Grundfesten, die auch in Rossos plastischem Impressionismus von großer Bedeutung ist. Donatello und Rosso haben demnach mehr gemeinsam, als der erste Blick vermuten lässt
