Male Marble Nude Wrestling

Pietro Bazzanti specialized in allegorical and genre subjects as well as copies of antique and Renaissance sculpture. Regarded as one of the most talented sculptors of his day, his studio in Florence became a center for other important sculptors such as Ferdinando Vichi, Cesare Lapini and Guglielmo Pugi. Many of these sculptors' works are inscribed Galleria Bazzanti.

During the Renaissance, the first European fine art academies were established in Italy and would guide the style and standards of visual culture in the following centuries. Academic art became dominant across the continent in the 17th century, with artists coming together to offer instruction in this style of painting and sculpture. 

The academic art period represented a significant change from the previous era when painters, sculptors and other artists were part of guilds and seen more as artisans than purveyors of culture. While patronage from the elite and the church remained pivotal, young artists were able to support themselves for the first time through academic exhibitions and an independent marketplace. The leading academies included the French Académie Royale de Peinture et de Sculpture founded in Paris in 1648 (which became the Académie des Beaux-Arts after the French Revolution) and the London Royal Academy of Arts formed in 1768 under the inaugural leadership of painter Joshua Reynolds. 

Academy students sketched drawings based on prints, sculptures and, finally, live models. Movements including neoclassicism and romanticism were particularly popular in these art schools and institutions where the influence of Raphael and Nicolas Poussin was prominent. Beaux Arts architecture and furniture design drew on these movements, too, and, as they also originated at the Académie des Beaux-Arts, the disciplines share common ground with academic painting and sculpture.

Although academic art was a major shift for artistic status when it began, by the middle of the 19th century it was viewed as stodgy and resistant to new ideas, with the subject matter of artists such as William-Adolphe Bouguereau and Jean-Léon Gérôme generally limited to allegorical or mythological themes. Impressionism, realism and the other movements that engaged with contemporary issues that followed were direct reactions to the academic tradition, although it continued to inform the avant-garde as artists like Gustav Klimt and Pablo Picasso started their practices as academic realists.  

Find a collection of academic paintings, sculptures, prints and more art on 1stDibs. 

Nude sculptures are a traditional form of art around the world. For thousands of years, artists have expressed ideals, philosophy and cultural beliefs through the nude human form.

One of the oldest examples is the Venus of Willendorf, dating to the Upper Paleolithic period. From the ancient Greek Aphrodite of Knidos to Michelangelo’s 16th-century David, the nude sculpture has continued to evolve.

On a surface level, a nude sculpture portrays the beauty standards and ideals of a time and place, just as the mostly male painters of the Pre-Raphaelite movement can be seen as projecting an idea of feminine beauty that was confined to porcelain-skinned maidens, their auburn locks flowing, enacting scenes of longing or tragedy drawn from tales about Camelot or told by Dante, Shakespeare, Tennyson and Keats. On a deeper level, however, nude sculpture explores culture, traditions and beliefs. Even today, the human body continues to captivate artists and their audiences.

If you’re thinking about bringing nude sculptures or other kinds of sculptures into your home, remember: No matter how big or small your new addition is, it will make a statement in your space (busts, for example, can bring a dose of drama into an entryway). Large- and even medium-sized sculptures can be heavy, so hire some professional art handlers as necessary and find a good place in your home for your piece.

Find a large collection of nude sculptures and other sculptures from various time periods and cultural origins on 1stDibs.