ALLEGORY OF TRUTH OR BEAUTY BY PIERRE FEDERSPIEL
Allegory of truth or beauty: A Masterpiece by the Luxembourgish Sculptor Pierre Federspiel
Description: This spectacular marble is the most significant sculpture by the Luxembourgish Sculptor Pierre Federspiel, to some to auction, and it may be counted among his major works. Rising from a wave-like support in a beautiful S-curve, partially draped and holding up a mirror in her raised left hand, the present female nude is a testament to the sculptor’s skill and originality.
Luxembourgish Sculptor Pierre Federspiel (1864-1924)
Although eclipsed in fame by his French confrères, Pierre Federspiel was Luxembourg’s foremost sculptor of the late 19th and early 20th century. Having studied first at the Academy in Munich, then at the Académie Julian in Paris, Federspiel began his career as a pupil in the private studio of Alfred Boucher, the celebrated self-taught sculptor who was a close friend of Auguste Rodin. Federspiel first exhibited at the Cercle Artistique in Luxembourg in 1894, followed by several participations at the Paris Salon, recorded in 1889, 1890, 1892 and 1905.
Federspiel’s oeuvre ranged from public monuments to bourgeois portraiture. He executed several monumental sculptures for his native Luxembourg, including the Monument Dicks et Lentz at the Place d’Armes, the frieze with Countess Ermesinde on the façade of the Cercle Municipal, as well as the heads of historical figures which decorate the façade of the Gare Central. When representing personages of his time, such as Prince Henri, Joseph Junk, and various women of society, Federspiel was known for employing a bourgeois realism, emphasising their contemporary dress and demeanour. Pierre Federspiel was revered by his fellow countrymen, and his legacy survives in the Luxembourgish street that was named after him.
Material: White Carrara marble.
Overall size: 204 cm
Period: CA. 1900.
Provenance:
- Entrance hall, Avenue des Amandiers 1, Brussels, Belgium
- Sold in London in May 2016