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Alabaster Bust of a Young Girl by Gustave Van Vaerenbergh, Belgian Art Nouveau, 1900s
€2,000Bid from €1,000
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ProfessionalBenalmádena, SpainOn Whoppah since October 2024 • 18 sales
Product description
This alabaster bust was carved by the Belgian sculptor Gustave Van Vaerenbergh (1873–1927) in the 1900s, during the Art Nouveau period in which he built his reputation. Van Vaerenbergh trained at the Academy of Fine Arts in Ghent before settling in Schaerbeek, where he worked as a sculptor for the workshop Carli Frères, producing busts of young women and girls in marble, bronze, terracotta, and alabaster. This piece depicts a young girl with a soft headscarf draped over her hair, her face turned slightly upward with a direct, searching gaze. The bodice is carved from a grayer, veined section of alabaster that contrasts with the warmer, cream-toned stone used for the face, neck, and shoulders, and is detailed with a laced front closure held by three cord ties, a motif that recurs across several of the sculptor's known busts. The bust rests on its own integral, faceted alabaster base. The piece is signed. Having studied a number of Van Vaerenbergh's alabaster busts over the years, this particular carving stands out for the intensity and directness of the girl's expression, a quality not always present to this degree in his more idealized female subjects. Its scale suits a console table, a mantel, or a bookshelf, where the play of light through the alabaster can be appreciated at close range.
Specifications
ConditionGoodColorsBeige, WhiteMaterialStoneNumber of items1OrientationPortraitArt sizeSmallHeight20 cmWidth18 cmDepth9 cmSigns of usageScratches, Chipped
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About this seller
ProfessionalBenalmádena, SpainOn Whoppah since October 2024 • 18 sales