Siegfried Wagner

SIEGFRIED WAGNER (Hamburg, 1874 – Kongens Lyngby, Denmark, 1952)
“David with the Head of the Vanquished Goliath” (David med den overvundne Goliaths hoved), model from 1923.
Patinated bronze.
Monogrammed on the base. With foundry mark “L. RASMUSSEN KØBENHAVN.”
Measurements: 60 x 30 x 29.5 cm; 5 x 32.5 cm (pedestal).

Dated 1923, this bronze represents one of the most personal expressions of Siegfried Wagner’s figurative sculpture. The artist reinterprets the biblical episode of David and Goliath through an approach radically different from traditional heroic representation: the young victor is depicted seated with absolute serenity atop the monumental head of the defeated giant. The Bruun Rasmussen catalog itself (Bruun Rasmussen Auctioneers, 928 Moderne Kunst, Copenhagen, 2025) has highlighted this work for the unexpected scale relationship between the two figures and for the delicacy of details such as the beaded borders and Goliath’s hair, which extends beneath David’s garments.

The vertical composition capitalizes on the contrast between David’s slender, hieratic figure and the disproportionate bulk of Goliath’s face. The deep folds of the cloak, the open hands, and the frontal orientation of the figure introduce an archaic and ceremonial dimension, while the stylized treatment of the features and hair transforms the narrative into an image with strong symbolic content. Throughout his career, Wagner combined biblical, mythological, and Eastern references with a particular focus on the expressive possibilities of each material—a trait especially evident in the forcefulness and continuity of the masses in this bronze.

Of particular significance is the mark of the L. Rasmussen foundry in Copenhagen, one of Denmark’s historic artistic foundries. Founded in the 19th century by Lauritz Rasmussen and later continued by his descendants, it was involved in the creation of numerous Danish monuments and sculptures; the Nationalmuseet preserves historical documentation of its Copenhagen facilities. The presence of its mark provides the piece with a well-defined technical and manufacturing reference.

Wagner trained at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts between 1889 and 1896 and later worked in Vilhelm Bissen’s studio and alongside J.F. Willumsen. His work spanned monumental sculpture, ceramics, furniture, and the decorative arts; he also participated in the studio of Mogens Ballin, one of the key centers of renewal in Danish metal art around 1900. His work is represented at the Statens Museum for Kunst in Copenhagen, which houses several of the artist’s sculptures, and at the Vejen Kunstmuseum, an institution that has extensively studied his body of work and dedicated a monographic exhibition to him and Olga Wagner in 2005.