Lot 11: ALEXANDER MACDONALD

ALEXANDER MACDONALD ITALIAN B. 1847 VENUS AND CUPID signed and dated: ALEX R . MACDONALD FECIT. ROMAE. 1879 white marble group: 125.5cm., 49½in. column: 87.5cm., 34½in.

A. Panzetta, Nuovo dizionario degli scultori italiani, vol. 2, Turin, 2003, fig. 1087

Alexander Macdonald was the son of Lawrence Macdonald, 'Scotland's Canova' and one of the foremost British neo-classical sculptors. Lawrence settled in Rome in 1832 and Alexander was born there. Alexander studied in his father's studio and became a successful sculptor himself, following his father's classicising style. He exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1868 and 1878, but continued to be based in Rome. In the present model Macdonald has drawn directly from antique prototypes for his Venus, the goddess's stance with left leg stepping forward and drapery tumbling from the hips closely recalls the Venus de Milo.