Hippolyte Moreau

HIPPOLYTE MOREAU (France, 1832-1927).
"Venus and Cupid".
Patinated bronze.
Measurements: 79 cm high.

This magnificent bronze gracefully embodies the essence of the goddess Venus, perennial symbol of fertility, beauty and carnal love. Characterized as a laughing young woman, the figure of Aphrodite appears wrapped in a finely modeled gauze dress, whose light draping suggests the caress of the air and exposes her bust, thus reaffirming the classical iconography of fertility. In one of her arms she holds a basket filled with flowers, emblem of spring and the perpetuation of life, while at her side, Cupid playfully accompanies her, attached to Venus' turned leg, on which a second floral garland prolongs the celebration of the goddess.

The face of Venus, with sweet features and distant serenity, leans slightly in an oblique gaze, as if abstracted from the scene, wrapped in a gesture of placidity that separates her from the immediacy of the childish desire embodied by Cupid. The slight smile on her lips balances the insinuated sensuality with the noble reserve of a timeless goddess.

Hippolyte was the younger brother of Auguste Moreau, both sons of Jean-Baptiste. The Moreaus were the most important dynasty of 19th century French sculpture. He excelled in allegories and romantic scenes.

Moreau worked from a very young age alongside his father. His training continued in Paris, where he moved with his two brothers Auguste and Mathurin to study at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts. From 1863 to 1914 he exhibited at the Salon des Artistes Français. In 1878 he won a medal at the Universal Exposition and in 1900 he won it again at the Universal Exposition of that year. He is the author of the statue of Alexis Claude Clairaut on one of the facades of the Paris City Hall. Much of his work is preserved in the Museum of Fine Arts in Dijon, and in Catalonia, in the Victor Balaguer Library-Museum you can find a female bust by Moreau.