Léon Morice - Large Bronze

Léon Morice (1868-after 1943)
Important bronze "Sailor at the helm" - Sailor in the storm
Early 19th - early 20th century, circa 1900

Important and expressive bronze sculpture with a beautiful brown patina shaded with green, depicting a sailor facing the elements, firmly camped at the helm of his boat.
The figure, dressed in a thick peacoat and topped with a sailor's hat, adopts a tense, determined posture. His weathered face, turned towards the horizon, forcefully conveys the harshness of the maritime world and the struggle against the storm. The composition, animated by powerful modeling and a particularly successful sense of movement, evokes the waves and the violence of the elements through a sculpted base with dynamic lines.
This work, signed Léon Morice on the terrace, fully illustrates the late 19th century naturalist taste for scenes of popular life and figures of workers. The subject is known in the sculptor's work as "Marin à la barre" or "Pêcheur à la barre", and is among his most evocative compositions of the maritime world.

The bronze rests on an elegant, substantial black marble base, emphasizing the monumental strength of the whole.

A decorative sculpture of beautiful presence, both powerful and sensitive, ideal in a classical interior, a cabinet of curiosities or a seaside home.


Signature: signed Léon Morice on the terrace
Material: bronze with brown patina shaded with green
Socle: black marble
Epoque : circa 1900-1920
Dimensions:
Total height : 45 cm
Base: 18 × 18 cm

Condition: very good overall condition, beautiful old patina, slight traces of use consistent with age.

Léon Morice, a French sculptor active in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, exhibited at the Salon des Artistes Français. He is particularly appreciated for his naturalistic figures and popular subjects treated with vigor and humanity.

Attention very heavy set.