Emmanuel Villanis

Antique French Art Nouveau Bronze Female Bust Sculpture "1897" Emanuel Villanis

1897

Antique, Art Nouveau bronze of a beautiful maiden in the Neo-Classical manner by Emmanuel Villanis, Circa 1900. The bronze, titled "Phryne" depicts a beautiful Neo-Classical maiden, ...

A very beautiful antique Art Nouveau bronzed Carrara marble sculpture bust of a young maiden circa 1900, by Gustave Van Vaerenbergh (1871-1927). The sculpture portrays a beautiful young maiden made from Cararra marble, she is wearing a laurel wreath in her hair. She wears a bronzed bodice with leaf decoration in relief and is raised on a varigated grey & white socle base. The sculpture is signed to the rear " G. V. Vaerenbergh" and numbered "1173", the bust is in excellent condition. Gustave Van Vaerenbergh attended classes at the Academy of Fine Arts in Ghent, Belgium from 1888 to 1890. Like many artists from a modest background (he was the son of a shoemaker) , Gustave Van Vaerenbergh went to work in companies where he could use his artistic talent and education for commercial purposes. In 1901 he moved to Saint-Josse-ten-Noode , and a year later to Schaerbeek where he would live for the rest of his life. He went to work there as a " mouleur en plâtre " (modeller or maker of matrices for plaster statues) at the company A. Carli Frères in the L'Olivierstraat in Schaerbeek, a company that produced commercial statues. This successful company, which was active from the beginning to the middle of the twentieth century , initially had about 20 employees and at its peak about 100 employees. The statues were distributed worldwide. Antonio Carli, a sculptor, was the founder of the Atelier A. Carli Frères, together with family members. They came from Bagni di Lucca...