Gustave Doré (1832-1883) - Lot 52

Gustave Doré (1832-1883) Virgin and Child Terracotta proof Signed "G.ve Doré" on the terrace H. 79 cm In 1880, Gustave Doré designed a Madonna holding the Christ Child to adorn the tomb of his friend, the actress Alice Ozy. Christ, depicted with his arms on the cross in an attitude prefiguring his Passion, seems to have been inspired by Carrier-Belleuse's Messiah. Yet, dismissing the source of this inspiration, the artist writes: "[...] I think I've given it a new and absolutely personal twist. The Virgin, playing with her child, brings the movement of her arms to a gesture exactly like that of the last breath on the Cross. The mystical meaning conveyed by this group's correlation of the end with the beginning of the divine career has generally greatly moved and enchanted visitors to my studio." (April 3, 1880, DOR 1992/2-138, G. Doré documentation at the Musée d'Art Moderne, Strasbourg). Related work: -Gustave Doré, Vierge à l'enfant, marble, funerary monument to Alice Ozy, Paris, Cimetière du Père-Lachaise, 89ème Division.