Bronze Group " Two Greyhounds Playing Boules " , Pierre - Jules Mene (1810-1879)

Bronze group with brown patina , depicting two greyhounds playing ball , by the sculptor Pierre - Jules Mene (1810-1879) .
The group consists of the greyhound "Jiji" and the greyhound "Giselle".
Signature of the sculptor "PJ .MÊNE" in hollow , on the naturalist terrace representing a carpet .
Sculpture of old edition , period second half of the 19th century .
Very good state of conservation and patina .

Dimensions : 14.5 cm x 21.3 cm x 12 cm

The Group of  "Two Greyhounds Playing Boules" is the counterpart of the Group "Greyhound and King Charles" .

In Mêne's work , the dog is the animal loved and pampered , studied and represented more than all the others .
If hunting is the axis of his work , the dog is the constitutive element par excellence .
In animal sculptures , Mêne is the artist who left us the most models of canids , all perfectly treated in a realistic manner , and represented with an artistic truth and an anatomical rigor that will not weaken over the years .


Pierre-Jules Mene (1810-1879)

Pierre - Jules Mene , is a French sculptor , born March 25 , 1810 in Paris , city where he died on May 20 1879 .
He is considered to be one of the main representatives of animal sculpture in the 19th century .
Pierre - Jules Mene produced many animal sculptures , particularly in vogue under the Second Empire, like Antoine-Louis Barye , Auguste Caïn , Pierre Louis Rouillard and , later , François Pompon .
P.J Mene specialized in small bronzes, and did not produce work for public statuary .
His animal subjects have enjoyed great popular success .
Exclusive publisher of his works , the perfection of his productions is widely recognized .
He reveals himself , with Antoine-Louis Barye , as the one whose success has been the most constant , and this over the longest period .
Pierre - Jules Mene appears to be one of the best practitioners of his time .