Collection / Paintings & Screens
17436
A Porcelain Plaque of Venus By Abraham Constantin
A Porcelain Plaque of Venus By Abraham Constantin
Dimensions: H: 9 in / 23 cm | W: 12.5 in / 32 cm
PRICE: £28,000
17436
Venus, the Goddess of Love & Beauty
By Abraham Constantin (1785-1855)
A superlative painting on porcelain, depicting a nude female reclining on the river bank surrounded by swathes of billowing fabric within a landscape rendered in atmospheric polychrome; the skintone of the goddess Venus-also known as Aphrodite- executed in the smoothest detail. Signed by the artists lower left "A. Constantin"; signed and dated to the reverse "A. Constantin 1829."
French, Dated 1829
Abraham Constantin (1785-1855)
The Swiss-born Constantin is considered among the finest enamel and porcelain painters of all time, especially renowned for his portraits and his works in the style of the Old Masters. Moving to Paris in 1807, he became enamel portraitist to Napoleon and his family, before turning to working on porcelain in partnership with the famous Sèvres manufactory around 1812.
Acquainted with Ingres while living in Florence from 1820-1825, he was appointed porcelain painter to the king and gained the position of director of the Royal school of porcelain painting upon his return to Paris. He was awarded the Légion d'honneur in 1828 after exhibiting his copy on porcelain of François Gérard's 'L'entrée d'Henri IV à Paris,' while the present plaque was executed merely one year later in 1829 at the height of his career.
Works by Abraham Constantin belong to the permanent collections of the Museum de l'Horlogerie (Geneva), the Louvre (Paris), the Victoria and Albert Museum (London), and Museums of Athens, Milan, Stockholm, Turin, Prague, etc.
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