French Orientalist Bronze Sculpture of Tunisian Fruit Seller by Marcel Debut

Description: MARCEL DEBUTFrench, 1865-1933 French Orientalist Model of a Young Boy Selling Fruit Polychromed and patinated bronze | signed "Debut", sealed with editeur cachet "Bronze Garanti Au Titre Paris", applied plaque attached "PRIX DE ROME" Item # 311CSG30P-4 A very good quality cast after the original model of a "Fruit Seller" by Marcel Debut, the sculpture depicts a young Tunisian boy working hard to sell the fruit carried in the large woven basket under his arm. These were generally cast in the 1920s and 1930s and the surface and casting quality can vary greatly between the various examples; this sculpture is a rather good quality casting with a brilliant surface patina that glows under layers of wax. It features an overall reddish-brown and medium-brown multi-tone patina achieved first with a chemical base and then with layers of various "secret" pigments laid up on the surface to achieve the complex hues. His hat is finished in a ruby pigment likely sealed in lacquer. The naturalistic base is signed "Debut" in script and is sealed with the editeur cachet. These French Orientalist studies of the Arab and African nations found a large collecting audience in France and England. There was a fascination with what seemed like a timeless and unchanging traditionalism in these non-Western communities that piqued the nostalgia of collectors. The same sentiment that drove collectors to acquire landscape scenes of rural farms and buccolic views of domestic animals in fields gave a deep well for artists like Marcel Debut to draw upon in preparing studies of the tribal communities of "The Orient". Much of the original material came from travel in Tunisia, which was easily accessible as a French colony and a favorite destination for painters and sculptors. We have many of these wonderful models by Marcel Debut, Jean Didier Debut, Edouard Drouot, Emile Pinedo and Louis Hiolin available, all of roughly the same size and sealed by the same editeur.MARCEL DEBUT Born to sculptor Jean Didier Debut in Paris on March 27th of 1865, Marcel Debut studied first with his father and then at the École des Beaux Arts under Henri Chapu. He began to exhibit at the Salon des Artistes Français in 1883, including such works as Sommelier du XVe siècle (1889), Petit Pêcheur au harpon (1893), Actéon (1897), Le Génie des arts (1898), Une gueuse (1905), Watteau (1890), a vase with the theme of Persée et Andromède (1896), Labourage (1898) and L'Hiver(1913). He also executed numerous vases and bas-reliefs, designed some models for Sèvres to manufacture as statuettes and a bronze called Le Fauconnier which was offered at 85 cm in total height. In 1895 he received an honourable mention for his submission. Beyond his sculptures, he also dedicated himself to painting having studied under both Boulanger and Jules Lefebvre at the Academy; these views are often scenes of Paris. He died in 1933.Artist Listings & Bibliography:Bronzes: Sculptors & Founders, 1800-1930, vol. IV, Berman, Abage, 1980, p. 949, ill. 3637E. Benezit Dictionary of Sculptors, vol. IV, Gründ, 2006, p. 541Bronzes of the 19th Century: A Dictionary of Sculptors, Kjellberg, Schiffer, 1994, p. 266-267The Dictionary of Western Sculptors in Bronze, Mackay, Baron, 1977, p. 95Art Bronzes, Forrest, Schiffer, 1988, p. 473 [biography] Measurements: 12 1/8" H x 6" D x 4 1/2" W Condition Report: Cleaned and polished, sealed in conservator's grade wax; some rubbing wear patina in a few areas including to the outside of one arm and several areas in his hat; overall remaining in a very fine state of preservation, a very fine presentation, ready to place. About silla | antiques & artEstablished in 2009, our 9000 square foot brick-and-mortar gallery is home to a carefully curated and catalogued inventory of furniture, decorative arts, paintings, sculpture and estate jewelry. Our company has long specialized in sculpture circa 1860 through 1930 and as such the gallery always has a very large collection of exceptional European and American sculpture available on display. The gallery is located at 117 W Burd Street in Shippensburg, Pennsylvania and is open by appointment only. We welcome your visit and would love to meet with you. For clients located outside of the area, we are always available to discuss items by video conferencing or by phone. SHIPPINGWe take shipping very seriously and maintain a fully equipped in-house packing facility to professionally package these important and delicate pieces. All packaging is handled by our staff and will generally consist of: Wrapping the item in several inches of heavy-duty bubble wrap with careful attention shown to pressure points, crafting the placement of the bubble wrap in a manner that allows delicate parts of the item to remain out of harm's way. The item is then placed into a tight-fitting carton with a void fill of either peanuts, Styrofoam, bubble wrap or a combination of the three to ensure it cannot move within the carton That carton is then double-boxed by placing it into an outer carton 2-3" larger on all sides with a dense void fill in the gap [note, paintings are generally not double-boxed but instead have a different packing methodology to properly protect the frame from pressure] All shipments are guaranteed to arrive safely. We fully insure all shipments and in the event of damage we will handle all of the details around the claims process. You are only required to send along photos, to hold onto the damaged item and all packing materials until the claims process is resolved and we also reserve the right to require the damaged item to be shipped back to us at our expense (a prepaid label will be issued) to qualify for a refund.

Price: 1900 USD

Location: Shippensburg, Pennsylvania

End Time: 2024-12-19T19:09:14.000Z

Shipping Cost: 0 USD