Antoine Bofill

Little Red Riding Hood Inkwell

1920

Alfred Barye (1839-1882) "Lion and Antelope" Bronze Approx. 7.5H x 9W x 4D inches Signed "BARYE.ALF" and Inscribed under base "NO. 23 LION AND ANTELOPE" The son of a goldsmith, Parisian born Antoine-Louis Bayre was a sculptor of animal subjects and acclaimed, not only for his apparent skill, but as the founder of what became known as the French Animaliers School. Among his patrons were representatives of the state government and royalty including the Duke of Orleans and the Dukes of Luynes, Montpensier and Nemours. Well compensated financially, he was able to buy the best of materials and hire the country's most skilled foundry craftsmen. The foundry he hired was owned by Ferdinand Barbedienne, and casts from this period were stamped with the letters, FB. However, he did not make a lot of money from his work because he was such a perfectionist that often he would not sell his work because he thought it was not 'quite right'. In 1848, he declared bankruptcy, and his molds and plaster casts were sold along with the copyrights. Bayre's specialty was aroused, angry seeming wild game such as lions and tigers and elephants, but he also did equestrian groups and mythology figures. In order to do realistic depictions of animal anatomy, he spent much time at the Jardin de Plantes in Paris. His early training was as an apprentice to a metal engraver, but being drafted in the army in 1812, ended that education. In 1832, he had established his own studio, and unique at that time was his method of cold stamping his bronze casts, so that each one had a special number. He had his first entry, The Milo of Croton...

Pierre Jules Mene "Chien Braque" (Tom) Bronze approx. 5 x 9 x 4.25 Signed PIERRE JULES MENE (1810-1879) Pierre Jules Mene, (P. J. Mene), was born in Pa...

Luciano Minguzzi (Italian, 1911-2004) Piccolo Guerriero (Little Warrior) c. 1950s Bronze Monogrammed and Numbered 1/5 Height From Base to Top: approx. 12" High Bronze: 6 3/4 inches x 4W x 3D Luciano Minguzzi was born in Bologna in 1911 and died in Milan in 2004. In 1943 he took part in the Fourth Quadrennial of Rome. In 1950 he was awarded the grand prize for sculpture at the XXV Venice Biennale, and attended again in 1952. His works can be found at Museum of the Fabbrica del Duomo, in the Museum of Modern Art in the Vatican and in the Galleries of Modern Art in Rome, Milan, Bologna, Florence, Trieste, Verona, Carrara, Padova, as well as abroad and overseas. Additional Biography (translated from Italian): Luciano Minguzzi ( Bologna , 24 May 1911 - Milan , 30 May 2004 ) was a sculptor and medalist Italian . Image of the exhibition Luciano Minguzzi: sculptures and gouaches 1950-1970 in the Romanesque cloister of the Cathedral of Prato ( Museo dell'Opera del Duomo ), 24 April - 24 May 1971. Photo by Paolo Monti . Index: He made his first experiences under the wise guidance of his father, also a sculptor , continuing his studies at the Academy of Fine Arts in Bologna following the engraving courses held by Giorgio Morandi , those of sculpture under the guidance of Ercole Drei , attending at ' university the lessons Roberto Longhi. Thanks to a scholarship, he stayed in Paris and London , starting to exhibit in 1933 and already at the Roman Quadrennial of 1943 he obtained his first prize, which was followed by others including the Angelicum of 1946 and the first place ex aequo at the Biennale del 1950. Immediately after the war he created the monument to the Partisan and the Partisan for his hometown , located near Porta Lame , in the area where an epic battle between Nazi-Fascists and partisans took place in 1944 .
The work, composed of two figures of young people - one of which armed - caught in a moment of great naturalness, was forged with cast bronze from the equestrian statue of Benito Mussolini (by Giuseppe Graziosi ) which was located inside the current "Renato Dall'Ara" Stadium, in turn made with some cannons stolen from the Austrians during the Bolognese Risorgimento uprisings of 1848. Still on the theme linked to war , but with a changed style with more dramatic and expressionist tones , in the fifties he created a series of sculptures inspired by the theme of the men of the Lager and the unknown and anonymous victims, obtaining in 1953 the third prize in the competition for the "Monument to the Unknown Political Prisoner " announced by the Tate Gallery ( London ). In 1950 he won the competition for the "Quinta Porta" of the Milan Cathedral , completed in 1965 . In 1962 he participated, together with the most important international sculptors of the time, in the exhibition Sculptures in the city organized by Giovanni Carandente as part of the V Festival dei Due Mondi in Spoleto . He presented a 1958 iron and bronze sculpture entitled Pas-de-quatre. In 1970 he was given the task of building the "Door of good and evil" of the basilica of St. Peter in the Vatican , on which he worked with vigor and passion for seven years. In 2012, on the occasion of the centenary of the artist's birth, a posthumous anthological exhibition was set up in Bologna at the Fondazione del Monte [1] . He also worked as a medalist: his example is the silver 500 lire coin...

Lazzaro Donati (Italian 1926-1977) "La Regina" Bronze Signed on Base Size: approx 19 x 9 x 9 inches Lazzaro Donati (1926-1977) was born in Florence in 1926 and attended the Academy of Fine Arts. He began to paint in 1953, and in 1955 held his first exhibition at the Indiano Gallery in Florence. Within three years eleven exhibitions followed in Italy, and as his reputation grew he was invited to give major exhibitions in London, Paris, New York, Chicago, Rio de Janeiro and Montevideo. He is considered one of the foremost contemporary Italian painters and his paintings hang in museums and private collections throughout the Americas, Europe and Asia. Mr. Donati lived and worked at 24 Piazza Donatello in Florence, the square where generations of artists have created works worthy of the great Florentine tradition. As you entered the narrow hallway to his studio, a gilded life-size Venetian angel beckoned you to his door. Once inside, the present faded away and you found yourself in an atelier where early masters might have worked during the Renaissance. Within, luxurious Persian rugs set off the innumerable objects d'art and antique furnishings. Light poured in through the sloping glass wall on the north side. A dramatic stairway led to an overhanging balcony which served as a private gallery where the artist hung some of his favorite early works. To the left of the entrance was a smaller studio where Donati sculpted, with a window overlooking the famous old English cemetery where tourists laid flowers on the grave of Elizabeth Barrett Browning. In the main studio itself, where Donati received his clients in an atmosphere as polished as an office of a top executive, one hardly realized that it was here that the artist actually painted. His easel was covered with Persian blue velvet, the painting on the easel was already framed, his chair was upholstered in red velvet and on his palette the colors were arranged with the precision of a Byzantine mosaic. In a corner stand were his latest works, framed and ready to be sent off to his next exhibition in Europe or America. Donati was a born host with a warm welcome, an elegant man who possessed enormous charm a good nature and a keen sense of humor. Apparently shy, he preferred to speak on subjects extraneous to his art, purposely distracting you from his paintings, then leading you back to them, tactfully and without pretension. He spoke fluent French and English as well as some Spanish and German. "After all", he said, "you've got to know how to sell a painting to everyone." He had no sympathy for the "drip and splash" studios of his contemporaries, preferring to keep his studio tidy and spotless. "Painting is a matter of precision", he said, "If a painter can't put his paint where he wants it to go, I don't see how he can call himself a painter. For me it is absolutely necessary to control the paint." When asked to reveal the technique he used to achieve the enamel-like finish typical of his paintings he answered, "That is a secret between me and my butler. Actually, most of my paintings are done by him!" But in fact behind the façade, Donati was a serious craftsman who devoted to his painting as a way of life and means of expression. From the beginning of his career, his paintings revealed a striving for perfection and continual research in problems of style and technique. His early works indicated a momentary interest in surrealism and abstract art; they were predominantly two dimensional, depending on line and strong color. But by 1958, with his painting The Lady with a Fan...

Inkwell "Boar Hunting" by Christophe FRATIN (1801-1864) Cast in bronze with nuanced brown patina Signed on the hinge of the lid "Fratin" A very rare old cast France circa 1845 heig...

Presenting a beautiful mid-19th century bronze sculpture by the renowned artist Auguste Moreau, depicting a young girl holding a bird in one hand and a shovel in the other. This char...

Antique cast metal sculpture of a Maltese Terrier. The hinged cover reveals a glass lift-out inkwell.

Vintage sculpture of young girl is an original decorative object realized in the mid-20th century. Original colored metal and wood. Made in Italy. Dimensions: 42 x 26 cm. ...