Jean-Baptiste II Lemoyne (1704-1778) - Lot 451

Lot 451
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10000 - 15000 EUR
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Jean-Baptiste II Lemoyne (1704-1778) - Lot 451
Jean-Baptiste II Lemoyne (1704-1778) Bust of a young girl Terracotta on blackened wood pedestal 18th century H. 31.5 cm with pedestal (very slight crazing) Provenance: From the workshop of Jean-Baptiste II Lemoyne, preserved in his estate. Galerie Alain Moatti, rue des Saints-Pères, Paris Born into a family of sculptors, Jean-Baptiste II Lemoyne represents the great tradition of French sculpture. Accepted into the Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture in 1725 and a pupil of Robert Le Lorrain, Lemoyne made sculpted portraiture his specialty and became the official portraitist of King Louis XV. His work was mainly destined for a private clientele at court. Portraiture, very much in vogue in the 18th century, is wonderfully represented here. Although the identities of the two models remain unknown, these two busts can be compared to certain female busts in terracotta by Jean-Baptiste II Lemoyne, published in the work by Louis Réau. These include the busts of Madame du Barry (plate 16), Elisabeth Douce (plate 101) and Mademoiselle Victoire Martin (plate 102), signed and dated 1750. All three feature the same pedestal design, with the face slightly tilted and turned to the left or right, and a lock of hair adorned with florettes and returning to the front of the face. These two bust portraits testify to the artist's mastery of modelling, giving us two lively representations, and are characteristic of his free, lively style. Bibliography: Louis Réau, Une dynastie de sculpteurs au XVIIIe siècle, Les Lemoyne, 1927, Paris, Les Beaux-arts
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