Mathurin Moreau

MATHURIN MOREAU (Dijon, 1822 - Paris, 1912).
"Bacchante with children", c. 1870.
Patinated and gilded bronze with marble base rouge griotte.
It has a crack in the lateral area.
Presents numbering.
Signed.
Measurements: 66 x 32 x 32 cm.
Bronze sculpture representing a maenad, located in the center of the composition, accompanied by two putto that make up the retinue of Dionysus. The three figures form a sculptural group brimming with sensuality. Wrapped in fine gauze that reveals their nudity (in the manner of the Greek technique of wet cloths), they express in their gait the Bacchic ecstasy produced by dance, music and wine. The quality of the bronze, added to the skill of the sculptor, results in a piece of great delicacy.
Son of the painter Jean-Baptiste Moreau, and brother of the sculptors Auguste and Hippolyte, Mathurin Moreau (1822-1912) worked mainly in small bronze sculpture, although he also worked in ceramics. His favorite subjects were always those of romantic inspiration: allegories, literary and mythological figures, nymphs, young and beautiful girls, "putti" at play, etc. His was an academic and realistic style, characterized by the quality of his finishes, by his realism and, above all, by the grace, charm and elegance of his models. He exhibited his works at the Paris Salon from 1848, finally winning the medal of honor in the 1897 edition. He combined his artistic career with politics, becoming mayor of the 19th arrondissement of Paris and naming a street after him in 1912. He is currently represented in the Luxembourg Museum, the Musée d'Orsay and the Musée des Arts et des Métales in Paris, among others, and has public monuments in the Père Lachaise cemetery in the French capital.