Léon Bonduel (1857-1928) – The Alert, 1889 – Large Bronze, Salon 1890 – 80 Cm

An important 19th-century bronze sculpture entitled “The Alert,” signed and dated Léon Bonduel 1889 on the base. This major work by the academic sculptor Léon Bonduel was exhibited at the Salon des Artistes Français in 1890. A copy is now in the collection of the Musée des Beaux-Arts in Rennes, attesting to the historical significance of the piece. The sculpture depicts a young, heroic, nude warrior of antiquity, lying on a rocky mound, rising in a gesture of vigilance. The powerful modeling, the anatomical tension, and the dramatic horizontal composition perfectly illustrate the academic naturalism of the late 19th century. The richly ornamented decorative cartouche on the front (foliage, coat of arms, heraldic lion) bears the title “The Alert.”