Large 19th-century Bronze, 80 Cm, Jef Lambeaux, G. Courbet Museum, The Wrestlers

The Artableaux Gallery partners with museums;

This monumental bronze has returned to the gallery following its exhibition at the

Gustave Courbet Museum in Besançon, as part of the “Les Colosses” exhibition held during the 2024 Olympic Games.

Sold with invoice, certificate, and provenance record.

Period: 19th century

Signed: signed in the bronze; artist identified and priced,

Exceptional lost-wax bronze with a brown patina; bronze in perfect condition

History: Museum-quality work, exhibited at the Gustave Courbet Museum during the 2024 Olympic Games.

Subject: Wrestlers

Dimensions: Width 80 cm – Height 70 cm – Depth: 45 cm – Weight: Approx. 50 kg

Biography:

Joseph Marie Thomas LAMBEAUX VAN ANTWERPEN, known as Jef LAMBEAUX, 1852 / 1908

Jef Joseph Marie Thomas Lambeaux, born on January 14, 1852, in Antwerp and died on June 5, 1908, in Brussels, was a Belgian sculptor. He studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp. He was the brother of Jules Lambeaux.

In 1883, Jef Lambeaux was one of the founding members of the Brussels avant-garde group Les Vingt.

He studied under Joseph Geefs and later at the Antwerp Academy. His studio was located on Rue de Savoie (demolished in 1898), then at No. 104 Rue Antoine Bréart (demolished in 1977) in Saint-Gilles (Brussels).

He won a medal for his debut in 1881 and a gold medal at the Brussels Exhibition.

Notably, he created The Bitten Faun, which was shown at the World’s Fairs in Brussels (1897) and Paris (1900), but which became the center of a controversy over nudity at the 1905 World’s Fair in Liège, where the work was covered with a veil.

He was considered one of the leading figures of realist sculpture among 19th-century Belgian artists, with works born of his tormented genius.

A great circus enthusiast and a man of the people, Jef Lambeaux never lost his childlike wonder at the sight of wrestlers, boxers, and other bodybuilders who once performed in public squares. Sander Pierron reports: “In winter, you’ll find Lambeaux at the circus every evening.

In summer, during July and August, you’re sure to find him in the front row of spectators at the athletic arenas of the Boulevard du Midi fair.” It was there that Lambeaux drew inspiration for his powerful sculptural groups, which express the effort, pain, and emotions of combat. Jef Lambeaux could not help but be captivated by the muscle phenomenon Eugen Sandow.

Another major work: The Human Passions (1886), a marble bas-relief that was incorporated into Victor Horta’s pavilion in the Parc du Cinquantenaire, for which he received a medal of honor at the 1900 World’s Fair in Paris.

He was appointed a member of the Royal Academy of Belgium in 1903. Since 1899, the relief Human Passionshas been the subject of both praise and criticism.

He was appointed an Officer of the Order of Leopold and the Order of Bavaria.

Source: Bénézit, Source: Dictionary of Sculptors – 19th-Century Bronzes

Museums:

Numerous museums hold works by this sculptor.

Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium – The Wrestling Match bronze group, 240 x 167 x 130 cm

Ixelles Museum: Wrestlers (or The Olympians), dated 1895

Antwerp Museum: The Wrestlers, etc.

Ghent Museum,

etc.

Sold with invoice, certificate, and provenance record.

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