Eugene Lanceray

EUGENI ALEXANDROVICH LANCERAY (Russia,1848-1886).
"Couple of Cossacks on horseback", late 19th century.
Patinated bronze.
Signed in Cyrillic.
With signature of Nikolay Shtange, foundry workshop that in 1892 acquired the rights to cast more than 15 models of Eugene Lanceray, which he presented at the international exhibition of 1893 in Chicago.
Measurements: 40 x 34 x 15 cm.

"Cossack couple on horseback" shows a couple in love trotting on their horse. The equine, majestic and detailed, adds an extra dimension to the work, symbolizing strength and nobility. The bronze is worked with a high level of detail, characteristic of Lanceray's style. The textures of the clothing, the equine anatomy and the facial expressions of the characters are realistic and emotive. The work reflects the traditions and customs of Imperial Russia, particularly the life of the Cossacks, who were known for their military role and nomadic lifestyle.

Eugene Lanceray was a prominent 19th century Russian sculptor, known for his bronze works that captured scenes of everyday life, especially related to Russian culture and traditions. Cossacks were seen as guardians of the borders of the Russian Empire and were often associated with values such as courage and loyalty.

Eugene Lanceray was a Russian graphic artist, painter, sculptor, mosaicist and illustrator, stylistically associated with Mir iskusstva. He came from a prominent Russian artistic family of French origin. The artist spent his childhood in Ukraine, on a small estate of his father Neskuchnoe. After the death of Eugene Lanceray, the artist's father, the mother moved with her children to St. Petersburg, to her father's house, known in artistic circles as "the Benois house near Nikola Morskoy". Lanceray took his first lessons at the Drawing School of the Imperial Society for the Promotion of the Arts in St. Petersburg from 1892 to 1896. He then traveled to Paris, where he continued his studies at the Académie Colarossi and the Académie Julian from 1896 to 1899. After returning from France to Russia, Lanceray joined Mir iskusstva, an influential Russian art movement inspired by an art magazine of the same name, founded in 1899, in St. Petersburg. Like other members of Mir iskusstva, he was fascinated with Rococo art and often turned to 18th-century Russian history and art for inspiration. His creative method and aesthetic views evolved under the influence and guidance of Benois, although, in some aspects of his talent, Lanceray may have surpassed his master. Lanceray was the only prominent member of Mir iskusstva to remain in Russia after the Revolution of 1917. Lanceray left Georgia in 1934 and settled in Moscow, where he was engaged in the decoration of the Moscow Kazansky railway station and the Moskva Hotel. In 1920, he moved to Tbilisi, Georgia. While in Georgia, he lectured at the Tbilisi State Academy of Arts (1922-1934) and illustrated Leo Tolstoy's short Caucasian novels.
Lanceray left St. Petersburg in 1917 and spent three years living in Dagestan. During the same period, Lanceray also worked as a theatrical designer.