Art Deco Sculpture of a Woman on a Horse by Alphonse Darville

An Art Deco Belgian Bronze Statue  by Alphonse Darville created in 1930 . This spectacular piece with it’s image of a nude woman on horseback is both beautiful and powerful. It derives its inspiration from mythological Goddesses, such as Ceres the goddess of the harvest and fertility and Epona, protector of horses and harvest.

The rich verdigris patina and subtle shading highlight the details of the draped fabric, the sheaf of wheat and the stylized grass beneath the horse. It is a rare find and at over two feet tall, a most impressive piece.

La Gloire et la Paix by Darville

Darviille is most famous for his monumental  sculptures commsissioned for public spaces. His wall relief La Gloire et Prix (The Glory and Peace)  was done for the Hotel de Ville (City Hall) in Charleroi, Belgium. His high style Art Deco statuary embellished the Sports Stadium with stylized images of basketball, football, javelin and athletics.  Life sized bronzes of Jules Desiree and Paul Pastur are in public spaces. He has fine examples of his statuary at the Palais de Beaux Arts, the Civil Hospital and the National Bank.

Curator of a major exhibition of Darville Medals, Aurore Carlier explains his approach and his  motivations :
“The artistic vision of Alphonse Darville includes  a form of constant dissatisfaction … a permanent concern for perfection. During his life, Alphonse Darville took care to regularly make great cleanings in his workshop. Hundreds of pieces have been destroyed by the hand of their creator. Alphonse Darville has established his own selection criteria so that only the pieces he believes to have legitimacy will be passed on to posterity…”

We are so pleased that this piece was “passed on to posterity” and that we can offer it to you.