An Impeccable Pair of Polychrome-Patinated and Gilt Bronze Orientalist Busts by Adrien-Etienne Gaudez

Artist: Adrien-Etienne Gaudez (1845-1902)
Origin: French
Date: 19th century
Dimension: 32 in(H) x 21 in(W); 29 1/2 in(H) x 22 in(W)

Adrien-Etienne Gaudez entered the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in 1862 where he was a pupil of the noted sculptor François Jouffroy. He made his Salon debut two years later and continued to exhibit his work regularly in public exhibitions and in addition to numerous honors he won Gold Medals at the Exposition Universelle of 1889 and 1890. Gaudez's output was prolific and his sculptural oeuvre encompassed a wide range of subjects, though the artist is best known for his orientalist compositions. This bust displays all of the elements of finely-cast polychrome sculpture, a category which artists such as Charles-Henri-Joseph Cordier (d. 1905) pioneered in the 1860s with his ethnographic depictions in galvanoplastie of indigenous peoples from North Africa and Asia. Gaudez's use of red cold paint, mixed with gilt highlights throughout the figure's vest, belt, necklace and headdress enabled him to give a greater sense of depth and texture, much akin to his contemporaries.