Michael Wagmüller for Villeroy & Boch, 19th century

MICHAEL WAGMÜLLER for Villeroy & Boch, late 19th century.
"Young man carrying his sister on his shoulders".
Patinated stoneware.
Signed and dated: "Wagmüller, 1871".
Presents manufacturing stamps: "Villeroy & Boch Merzig an der Saar, Germany Saarland".
Patina and surface wear due to its previous location outdoors and small losses (see images). Structurally stable.
Sculpture measurements: 125 x 42 x 58 cm.
Measurements stand: 96 x 52 x 53 cm

Large format sculpture signed and dated in 1871 by Michael Wagmüller, one of the most renowned Bavarian sculptors of the last third of the 19th century. The work delicately captures a scene of fraternal tenderness, resolved with a refined naturalism and a dynamic composition that brings movement and balance to the whole.
The quality of the modeling - visible in the fluidity of the draperies, the anatomical naturalness and the contained expressiveness of the faces - is evidence of the artist's solid academic training. The slight twisting of the group breaks the frontality and gives liveliness to the scene, conceived to be appreciated in the round.
Executed in stoneware patinated by Villeroy & Boch, the work stands out for the sharpness of the modeling and the richness of nuances, qualities that reflect both the mastery of the sculptor and the technical excellence of the prestigious German manufacturer, a European benchmark in high quality artistic production during the 19th century.
Wagmüller's presentation of a similarly themed model at the Vienna Universal Exhibition of 1873 is documented, confirming the international diffusion of this type of composition within his career.
Its monumental scale, reinforced by the original architectural pedestal, gives it a powerful scenographic presence, ideal for a singular interior, a classical garden or an institutional space.

Trained at the Munich School of Arts and Crafts under the tutelage of Anselm Sickinger, Michael Wagmüller developed a career supported by official commissions and the favor of the European aristocracy. Between 1868 and 1873 he worked in London producing busts for the British nobility. In 1869 he received an honorary medal at the Glaspalast in Munich, and later received commissions from King Ludwig II of Bavaria for the palaces of Linderhof and Herrenchiemsee, consolidating his position in the German sculptural scene.