Isidore de Rudder

ISIDORE DE RUDDER (Belgium, 1855-1943).
"Cleopatra", c. 1900.
Patinated bronze and Belgian black marble pedestal.
Model illustrated in "Beeldhouwkunst in België" by Engele Marx.
Presents foundry stamp "Luppens& Cie. Bruxelles.
Measurements: 56 x 28 x 26 cm.
Around 1900 Rudder realized Cleopatra, a sculpture in patinated bronze that represents the bust of the Egyptian queen at the moment before her death. The figure appears with her breast exposed, where the asp is curled. Cleopatra directs her gaze directly towards the serpent, establishing an intense visual dialogue that reinforces the drama of the scene.
Isidore de Rudder was one of the most outstanding Belgian sculptors of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Trained at the Academy of Fine Arts in Brussels between 1869 and 1880, he showed from very early on a remarkable sensitivity for modeling and great technical versatility. His first work presented in an official competition was Tête d'Enfant, exhibited at the Ghent Salon of 1880, followed by Feue Madame L. at the Salon of 1881 and Le Petit Pêcheur, presented in 1882 at the circle of the Union des Arts.
That same year he won second prize at the prestigious Prix de Rome, recognition that allowed him to travel and further his artistic training in countries such as Germany, England and France. Throughout his career he worked with a wide variety of materials, demonstrating an exceptional technical mastery and a sensitivity close to the symbolist and modernist languages of his time.
Isidore de Rudder's work is preserved today in numerous public spaces and museums in Belgium and France, such as the Flemish Theater in Brussels, the Botanical Garden in Brussels and the Place de l'Alma in Paris. His famous sculpture The Nest, which brought him great recognition, is exhibited in the Royal Museum of Fine Arts in Antwerp, while L'Éducation morale is part of the collection of the Royal Museum of Fine Arts in Brussels.