Jean Osouf (1898-1996) - Lot 181

Jean Osouf (1898-1996) Study of Coralie High relief in plaster Signed "J. OSOUF" on the left side of the figure H. 30.5 x L. 13.5 cm A member of the "Group of Nine" with Paul Cornet, Raymond Corbin and Marcel Damboise among others, Jean Osouf was a self-taught artist. A bookseller and First World War hero, it was Aristide Maillol who convinced him of his talent for sculpture. Osouf attended the Scandinavian Academy, where he studied under Charles Despiau. After the 1937 World's Fair, where his statue L'Éveil (The Awakening) was well received by the critics, he embarked on a career as a sculptor influenced by medieval art. From 1935 to 1945, Jean Osouf created numerous works of his model Coralie. These busts and heads are an opportunity for the sculptor to study the girl's behavior and character with delicate veracity. Commenting on these female busts, art critic Waldemar George remarked, "Osouf finds in his busts of young girls the sinuous smile of the Angel of Reims, that 'vincien' smile avant la lettre which is one of the emblems of French culture". Related works: -Jean Osouf, Baigneuse, étude de Coralie, 1940, bronze, H. 31.5 x W. 13 x D. 13 cm, Reims, Musée des Beaux-Arts, inv. 999.7.3 ; -Jean Osouf, Statuette nu Coralie, circa 1936, brown patinated bronze, H. 49 x W. 12 x D. 10 cm, Remis, Musée des Beaux-Arts, inv. 999.7.2.