Terms and conditions of use
Lion and boar
(Lion dévorant un sanglier)
(c. 1835); cast (c. 1876)
Medium
bronze
Measurements
24.5 × 36.7 × 21.8 cm (overall)
Credit Line
National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
Felton Bequest, 1905
Gallery location
19th Century European Paintings Gallery
Level 2, NGV International
About this work
Described by the influential critic Théophile Gautier as ‘the Michelangelo of the menagerie’, Barye studied animals closely, and in 1854 was appointed master of zoological drawing at the Musée d’Histoire Naturelle, where Auguste Rodin was one of his students. In addition to having a masterly technique, Barye achieved a high
degree of anatomical accuracy in his work, combining his knowledge and skill with a scholarly understanding of artistic precedents. He was influenced by the stylish flair of Italian Mannerist and Baroque art, as well as by the solid forms of ancient Greek and Roman sculpture, and the exotic subject matter in this work has classical
antecedents. Barye’s dramatic interpretations of sometimes violent themes made him one of the most prominent sculptors
of the Romantic movement in France.
Artwork Details
Place/s of Execution
France
Inscription
cast in top of left side in metal base c.: BARYE. (underlined)
Accession Number
237-2
Department
International Sculpture
This digital record has been made available on NGV Collection Online through the generous support of Digitisation Champion Ms Carol Grigor through Metal Manufactures Limited