Bronze French Art Nouveau Match Holder

Extremely beautifully detailed 19th century bronze. A lady leaning on a tree stump after picking flowers for her basket. Great original patina. Sculptur...

19th century French bronze woman leaning on column with embossed foundry stamp.

Emmanuel Villanis comes from a family of Italian origin. From 1861, his parents returned to Italy to settle in Piedmont. He had fled Italy because the war of independence broke out, under the threat of Napoleon Bonaparte. In 1871, the artist enrolled at the Albertina Academy of Fine Arts in Turin; he follows the teaching of the sculptor Odoardo Tabacchi (1831-1905). As soon as he finished his studies, his master encouraged him to exhibit: his bust Alda, for example, was presented in Milan in 1881. In 1885, Villanis moved to Montmartre, a district of Paris that he never left. The artist's fame is built on his production of female figures. Aida, Judith, Delilah, Lucretia, Cinderella: her work brings together the great heroines of opera, literature, mythology and the Bible. Villanis also discusses certain types - the Bohemian, the Châtelaine, or the Parisienne - and several allegories, including Painting and Sculpture. Made mainly in bronze, sometimes chryselephantine, his sculptures subtly bear the mark of Art Nouveau, including the lettering of the title, which regularly adorns the base. His play on the patinas further adds to the finesse of the line, making Villanis one of the major sculptors of Art Nouveau. Regarding the casting of bronzes, he worked mainly with the Société des Bronzes de Paris and with Eugène...

Bronze Figure of an Art Nouveau young woman. circa 1900. Beautiful European Art Nouveau Bronze Sculpture of a young woman. This beautifully made German style bronze sculpture of a yo...