Lion and Antelope (No. 23)
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...
Category
19th Century Realist Figurative Sculptures