Agathon Léonard

AGATHON LEONARD (Lille, 1841-Paris, 1923).
"Ballerina".
Bronze.
Marble pedestal.
Signed.
Measurements: 45 + 8 cm (pedestal).

The most celebrated theme of this sculptor was that of the dancers, like the one shown here. Agathon Léonard was a French Art Nouveau sculptor. Léonard moved to Paris at a young age and studied sculpture at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris with Eugène Delaplanche. In 1887 he joined the Société des Artistes Français and in 1897 the Société Nationale des Beaux-Arts. He exhibited regularly throughout France and was named Knight of the Legion of Honor in 1900. One of his best known works is La Cothurne (Tragic Pose from Le Jeu de l'escharpe), modeled in 1895 and cast in 1900. The handkerchief play, executed in the characteristic fin-de-siècle and gilt style, depicts a dancer in a flowing dress with a billowing handkerchief on her head. This piece, made in 1897, was inspired by the famous dancer Lois Fuller and was displayed as a centerpiece at the 1900 Universal Exposition in the Pavillon de Sèvres in Paris. Léonard's works were cast in bronze by the Susse Frères Editeurs foundry. In addition to bronze, he also produced works in marble, quartz and ivory. His bas-relief of Saint Cecilia is in the Museum of Abbeville and the Museum of Nantes houses a bust entitled The Looter of Shipwrecks. Léonard also made medallions, statuettes and Art Nouveau ceramics.