Bronze By Ruth Milles

This bronze sculpture, featuring a nuanced brown patina, captures an intimate and tender scene titled "Grandmother and Granddaughter." Created by the Swedish artist Ruth Millès in the very early 20th century, the work beautifully exemplifies the Impressionist current within Art Nouveau sculpture.The piece reflects the artist's deep affection for Brittany—a region where she regularly spent her summers, notably in Saint-Briac and Pont-Aven, and whose seafaring life and traditions profoundly inspired her sculptural work. Here, she depicts an elderly woman wrapped in a heavy cloak, leaning with infinite tenderness toward a young girl nestled against her. The pyramidal composition enhances the sense of protection and intergenerational connection. The execution is distinguished by a vibrant, vigorous handling of the material: the intentionally rugged, textured surfaces catch the light in shifting ways, lending life and movement to the drapery. This expressionist treatment—reminiscent of the influence of great Parisian masters of the era, such as Auguste Rodin—imbues this scene, steeped in the Breton spirit, with profound emotional resonance and a striking modernity.