Guido Righetti (1875-1958) - "gazelle Dig-dig"

Very beautiful and rare bronze proof with a strongly nuanced brown patina Old cast during the artist's lifetime Probably by the "Artistica Battaglia" Foundry Signed in wax and dated 1916 Around 1916/1920 Dimensions: Height: 17.2 cm Length: 15.5 cm Width: 10.6 cm Paris Manaus Gallery Biography: Guido RIGHETTI (1875-1958) Italian School Coming from the Milanese upper middle class, Guido Righetti was born on September 29, 1875 in Milan. After his classical secondary studies, the young man, idle and wealthy, frequented the intellectual and artistic circle located at the Casa Ricordi in Montenapoleone where he rubbed shoulders with painters, poets, and musicians. He first devoted himself to drawing and the animal world, which particularly fascinated him, would soon capture his full attention. Then, drawing was no longer enough for him. He began to model on the advice of Prince Paul Troubetzkoy, a friend of his family, who was then teaching at the Brera Academy. He worked at his own pace, self-taught, clay, wax and plasticine. It was at the age of 38 that Guido Righetti decided to cast his first works in bronze and show them to the public. He enjoyed great popularity during the interwar period when the Italian government, and more particularly the Milanese municipality, placed large commissions with him for the decoration of parks, fountains and bathing establishments. However, he did not participate in any way in the glorification of the regime. Living apart, he retired to the upper Brianza valley to the hermitage of San Salvatore which belonged to his family, where he spent most of his life in fertile solitude. Ruined by the war, he was forced to abandon his hermitage in 1950 and returned to live in Milan where he died in 1958 in oblivion and destitution.