Jozef (franz) Pallenberg - Bear, Playing With A Ball, Bronze Animal Sculpture

Bronze with nuanced brown patina, Bear, Playing with a Ball (standing) by Josef Pallenberg (1882–1946), signed “Jos Pallenberg” at the base.
Cast circa 1920.
A casting of fine quality in both execution and chiseling.

Josef Pallenberg (1882-1946) is one of the most famous — though not widely recognized by the general public— German animal sculptors of the twentieth century. Being a child of his era and discipline, Pallenberg was deeply influenced by zoology and amassed a large collection of natural history himself; this allowed him to transcend the boundaries between the disciplines of zoology and art history.

The animalier mainly observed indigenous and exotic animals’ behaviour and habits at the zoos in Cologne, Düsseldorf and Berlin. He also regularly took educational trips, amongst others to his brother in the United States, where he attended several animal shows enabling him to study social behavior of those featured. Additionally, Pallenberg lived with several wild species such as lions, wolves, gazelles, bears,…. gaining firsthand experience of their conduct and demeanor. Several private photographs show Pallenberg with young bears, illustrating his close relationship with these animals.

According to contemporary sources he was designated as the ‘master of shapes’ with a great sense of ‘naturalism’. Pallenberg realized numerous European and American commissions.

Literature and model in: Bartelmus, Martin and Stefan Schweizer. Der Tierbildhauer / The Antimal Sculptor. Jozef Pallenberg 1882-1946 (Berlin: Deutscher Kunstverlag, 2020), referenced model p109, n°43 Bär, mit Ball spielend (stehend).