French Bronze Sculpture Representing A Nude Woman, Marcel Debut 108 Cm

MARCEL DÉBUT (France, 1865 - 1933). "Dancing Nymph", c. 1900. BRONZE Signed. Dimensions: 108 x 43 x 30 cm. A nymph or fairy of nature is the protagonist of this sculpture. The woman, with delicate and slender forms, stands in the center of the pedestal. The delicate, floating and undulating forms of the sculpture allow us to link it to the Modernism or Art Nouveau movement, which had in nature and popular mythology, populated by fairies, elves and nymphs, two of its main sources of inspiration. Marcel Début was one of the most eminent bronze sculptors of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the apogee of this discipline. The son of sculptor Didier Début, Marcel trained with Henri Chapu at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris, winning the Grand Prix to travel to Rome. He frequented the Parisian Salons from 1883 until the start of the First World War. He worked primarily on the human figure, often with a realistic approach, although he also produced excellent animal sculptures. Marcel Début moved between Romanticism, Realism, and Impressionism, even producing works that fell within the Art Nouveau movement. His works were particularly popular during the Romantic period, although they already exhibited early Impressionist traits.