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14/10/2008

Scultura

Moretti Fine Art, New York

Tomasso Brothers Fine Art will stage their first-ever sculpture exhibition at the Williams Moretti Irving Gallery, 24 East 80th Street, New York, from Wednesday 15 October to Saturday 1 November 2008. SCULTURA will showcase a representative selection of important sculptures in several media, from some of the main cultural centres of Europe, and will be an introduction to the dynamic partnership of three brothers, Dino, Giovanni and Raffaello, who established their company in 1993 and are based at Bardon Hall, Leeds, UK. Comprising some thirty pieces from their extensive holdings, the exhibition will offer an insight into their taste and style and their passion for the art of sculpture.

Of particular interest is the exciting re-emergence of a bronze by Andrea Riccio (c.1470-1532) with an illustrious provenance from the Lichtenstein princes. Recognised as probably autograph by the great bronze expert Leo Planiscig in the early 20th century and recently verified as fully autograph, it depicts the infant Hercules, standing on his left leg, the right leg and right arm raised (fig.1). The exhibition of this bronze will provide connoisseurs with an interesting point of comparison with works in Andrea Riccio: Renaissance Master of Bronze at The Frick Collection in New York, that runs concurrently with Scultura and is the first exhibition ever dedicated to this Paduan master, best known for his virtuoso small bronzes.

Many of the pieces in the Tomasso Brothers exhibition have distinguished provenances, including an important equestrian bronze of Carlo Emanuele I by Antonio Susini (active c.1580-1625) which has an unbroken provenance from the House of Savoy (fig.2). Another piece by Susini is The Fowler, a bronze of Giambologna’s composition of the same name, with every detail finely finished. It was recently recognised by Tomasso Brothers in an English country house and has an aristocratic Irish provenance dating back more than two centuries from Ballyfin, Ireland (fig.3).

One especially exciting discovery is of a rare bronze by the enigmatic sculptor Gianfrancesco Susini (1585-c.1653) which depicts Europa and the Bull. This unique and important example of an unknown composition is of the highest quality and has an original and immaculate golden red patina, typical of the best Florentine bronzes (fig.4).

A wonderful animal bronze is a 16th century North Italian model of the famous Soliman, The Elephant, circa 1552, that belonged to Emperor Maximillan II (fig.5). Soliman was a gift from the King of Portugal to the Emperor and was shipped across the Mediterranean and then marched across the North of Italy and over the Alps to Vienna. Two other fine animal pieces are a bronze model of the Medici Lion, c.1570, by Pietro da Barga and a 17th century Giambologna School model of a horse (figs.6 & 7).

Also on display is a pair of beautiful bronze busts of Geta and Plautilla that were commissioned by Lord Parker, 1st Earl of Macclesfield, in 1724 on his Grand Tour, from the virtuoso Florentine sculptor Pietro Cipriani (c.1679-1745). The busts are in totally untouched and original condition having been in Shirburn Castle, near Oxford, since their creation and have directly descended within the family until acquired by Tomasso Brothers (fig.8).

Another piece that has only recently come to light is a portrait of Ferrante, King of Naples, by Gregorio di Lorenzo (formerly called the Master of the Marble Madonnas) late 15th century. This powerful portrait of a major Renaissance patron of the arts is an important addition to the study of Italian portrait sculpture (fig.9).

Amongst the French sculptures to be exhibited is an extremely fine bronze bust of Voltaire, France’s most famous 18th century philosopher and writer, dated 1778, by Jean Antoine Houdon (1741-1828) (fig.10). Probably Houdon’s most famous single portrait, this is a bronze version of the marble example held at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.

An important pair of marbles depicting Venus and Mercury by Jean-Baptiste Pigalle (1714-85), one of France’s greatest Rococo sculptors, can be documented back to 1762 (figs. 11 a & b). The pair originally belonged to Fermier Général Bouret de Vézelay, passing to the Marquis d’Aligre and thence by descent to the Marquis de Pomereu at the Hotel de Pomereu, Rue de Lille, Paris.

Tomasso Brothers forged their company through their passionate love of art and their education in fine art from an early age. Whilst they have an interest in several fields, including antiquities, old master paintings and fine furniture, Tomasso Brothers is already recognised internationally for specialising in important European sculpture from the Early Renaissance to the Neo-Classical periods. As will be seen in SCULTURA, the forte of the family partnership is a particular taste and knowledge in European Renaissance bronzes. This has led them to form a key collection, with an emphasis on the antique and its re-invention through the ages.

Whilst the exhibition in New York is an exciting debut for Tomasso Brothers, the company has previously promoted and supported, through loans and exhibitions, major international institutions such as The Fitzwilliam Museum Cambridge, The Centro Internazionale, Carrara, The National Gallery, Prague, and The Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna. In addition the company has advised a number of American private collectors of European sculpture and made significant sales to some of America’s most prestigious museums.

Williams Moretti Irving Gallery
24 East 80th Street, New York, NY 10075, USA
Opening hours: 10 am to 6 pm, Monday to Saturday

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