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Daniel Katz Ltd
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Medium
Terracotta
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Signed/Inscribed/Dated
Signed on the base of the trunk Pierre Michel
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Dimensions
49.00cm high
( 19.29 inches high)
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Literature:
Bibliographical references
Clodion 1738-1814, exhib. cat. by Anne Poulet and Guilhem Scherf, Musée du Louvre, Paris, March-June 1992, pp. 396-404
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Description / Expertise
Pierre-Joseph Michel was the brother of the celebrated Claude Michel (1738-1814), known as Clodion. Like his brother, he left his native Nancy to work in the studio of their uncle Lambert-Sigisbert Adam in Paris. Little is known of his life and career, not even his date of death. Anne Poulet recorded only five signed sculptures by Pierre -Joseph Michel in her exhibition catalogue on Clodion in 1992 . The present Standing bather is thus a very important addition to the artist’s oeuvre.
This remarkably well-preserved terracotta shares several stylistic features with the other known works by Michel: the bather’s face shows almond-shaped eyes, a small mouth and a slender chin, her gracious hands and feet have elongated fingers and toes. Her facial features and hair are particularly close to the Young seated woman reading a letter (Musée Cognacq-Jay, Paris). The artist delicately modelled the young woman’s body creating an almost-alive soft flesh. Her restrained posture is typical of Michel, who favoured a calm and modest sensuality.
If the influence of his brother Clodion is noticeable in the choice of subject, material and scale, Pierre Michel was not a servile follower. The fact that he signed his sculptures is proof that he enjoyed a personal reputation and clientele.
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