Giuseppe Bessi

GIUSEPPE BESSI (Volterra, 1857 - 1922).
"Gioconda", c.1899.
Carved marble.
Signed.
Measurements: 49 x 42 x 18 cm.
Carved marble sculpture modeled after Leonardo's famous Mona Lisa.
Giuseppe Bessi was an Italian sculptor who trained at the Art School of his hometown, Volterra, directed by Paride Bagnolesi. He then continued his studies at the Academy of Fine Arts in Florence, where he was taught by the sculptor Augusto Rivalta, before returning to Volterra in 1872. There, in 1879, he established a workshop and began to specialize in statues and busts in alabaster, marble and onyx, although he also worked in bronze. He is considered one of the most important representatives of Italian salon sculpture. His works combine the forms of neoclassicism and Art Nouveau. Bessi was director of the Volterra School of Art (1891-1910), where he taught until his death. Bessi's alabaster works were exhibited at important exhibitions, such as the 1900 Paris Universal Exposition, the 1902 Turin International Exposition of Modern Decorative Art, and the 1904 Louisiana Purchase Exposition (St. Louis World's Fair). Bessi was awarded several prizes and his works were very successful in the international art market. As a result, replicas were often made.