Denise Delavigne; 19th-20th century.

DENISE DELAVIGNE (19th-20th century).
"L'amour entravé", c. 1900.
White marble.
Signed.
Measurements: 75 x 24 cm.
Sculpture finely carved in white marble representing Cupid tied, erect in an elegant contrapposto posture and leaning naturally on the trunk of a tree. The winged infant figure appears with his hands tied behind his back, an iconographic motif that alludes to the containment or impotence of love. The lowered gaze and slightly melancholic expression reveal a refined emotional sensitivity, characteristic of late 19th century academic sculpture, in which formal idealization is combined with a delicate sentimental lyricism.
The work evidences a remarkable technical virtuosity, perceptible in the smooth and anatomically precise modeling of the body, in the meticulous treatment of the hair and wings, as well as in the successful contrast between the polished smoothness of the flesh and the rough texture of the tree bark that supports it. The figure is placed on a circular molded base that reinforces its elegant verticality and contributes to the compositional balance of the whole.
It is a representative example of neoclassical-inspired salon sculpture, where the mythological theme is interpreted from a friendly and sentimental point of view, in accordance with bourgeois taste and the predominant aesthetic ideal of the second half of the 19th century.