Lot was sold
Lot 1367 | August Gaul | Sea Lion
Estimate
4.000
- 6.000
€
D
Result:
(incl. premium)
11.220 €
GAUL, AUGUST
1869 Großauheim - 1921 Berlin
Title: Sea Lion.
Technique: Bronze, patinated brown.
Height: 32,5cm.
Notation: Inscribed lower right: A. Gaul.
Foundry Mark: On the side of the plinth Foundry stamp: N. Noack Berlin.
Literature:
cf.: J. Gabler: August Gaul. Das Werkverzeichnis der Skulpturen, Berlin 2007, p. 150ff, no. 106-3.
cf: Exhibition cat. "August Gaul. The Alfons and Marianne Kottmann Collection", Museums of the City of Hanau 21.06 - 04.09.2011, p. 35.
Provenance:
Kottmann Collection, Hanau.
In 1903 Gaul presented the design for a fountain to the city of Münster, but it was never executed for various reasons. On the rim of the round basin he envisioned two groups of penguins and two groups of sea lions. These animal figures were later cast as individual pieces in porcelain, stoneware or bronze.
When he won a season ticket for the Berlin Zoological Gardens in the spring of 1890, August Gaul, a native of Hanau, found his life's theme. Until then, the son of a stonemason in Berlin had tended to work in arts and crafts; with his daily visits to the zoo, he was able to study animals with fascination and developed the desire to put this into practice artistically. He began studying at the Hochschule für bildende Künste, among others with Paul Meyerheim, who was known not least for his depictions of lions. It was in the studio of the sculptor Reinhold Begas that he first realised his animals in three dimensions. However, Begas' monuments were still very much rooted in neo-baroque naturalism - Gaul, however, was drawn towards Impressionism and the avant-garde.
In Berlin, the representatives of modern tendencies gathered in the Secessionist group. August Gaul became active here early on and was able to establish important contacts for him. As a sculptor - especially with his exotic theme of animals - he stood out from the group of painters. His works emphasised the plastic qualities of the animals that he had grasped during his long studies; he depicted them in a calm and typical posture, concentrated on the essential and free of purely material structures. Thus Gaul's objective approach and his turning away from mythological or historical themes made him very modern and a pioneer of modernism.
August Gaul is described as a very quiet and reserved character; his success, which still resonates today, is due in large part to his gallerist, in addition to his lively motifs. As a founding member of the Secessionist group, he came into contact with Paul Cassirer, the very active and well-connected patron of the Impressionists. Gaul sold his works through Cassirer, Cassirer's gallery arranged public commissions and private collectors for him. And a close friendship developed between the two very different characters that lasted until Gaul's death in 1921 - and beyond. With great foresight, the artist had set up an estate committee, with Paul Cassirer as the determining figure. The committee disposed of the replicas of his designs and thus contributed decisively to maintaining the artist's reputation
1869 Großauheim - 1921 Berlin
Title: Sea Lion.
Technique: Bronze, patinated brown.
Height: 32,5cm.
Notation: Inscribed lower right: A. Gaul.
Foundry Mark: On the side of the plinth Foundry stamp: N. Noack Berlin.
Literature:
cf.: J. Gabler: August Gaul. Das Werkverzeichnis der Skulpturen, Berlin 2007, p. 150ff, no. 106-3.
cf: Exhibition cat. "August Gaul. The Alfons and Marianne Kottmann Collection", Museums of the City of Hanau 21.06 - 04.09.2011, p. 35.
Provenance:
Kottmann Collection, Hanau.
In 1903 Gaul presented the design for a fountain to the city of Münster, but it was never executed for various reasons. On the rim of the round basin he envisioned two groups of penguins and two groups of sea lions. These animal figures were later cast as individual pieces in porcelain, stoneware or bronze.
When he won a season ticket for the Berlin Zoological Gardens in the spring of 1890, August Gaul, a native of Hanau, found his life's theme. Until then, the son of a stonemason in Berlin had tended to work in arts and crafts; with his daily visits to the zoo, he was able to study animals with fascination and developed the desire to put this into practice artistically. He began studying at the Hochschule für bildende Künste, among others with Paul Meyerheim, who was known not least for his depictions of lions. It was in the studio of the sculptor Reinhold Begas that he first realised his animals in three dimensions. However, Begas' monuments were still very much rooted in neo-baroque naturalism - Gaul, however, was drawn towards Impressionism and the avant-garde.
In Berlin, the representatives of modern tendencies gathered in the Secessionist group. August Gaul became active here early on and was able to establish important contacts for him. As a sculptor - especially with his exotic theme of animals - he stood out from the group of painters. His works emphasised the plastic qualities of the animals that he had grasped during his long studies; he depicted them in a calm and typical posture, concentrated on the essential and free of purely material structures. Thus Gaul's objective approach and his turning away from mythological or historical themes made him very modern and a pioneer of modernism.
August Gaul is described as a very quiet and reserved character; his success, which still resonates today, is due in large part to his gallerist, in addition to his lively motifs. As a founding member of the Secessionist group, he came into contact with Paul Cassirer, the very active and well-connected patron of the Impressionists. Gaul sold his works through Cassirer, Cassirer's gallery arranged public commissions and private collectors for him. And a close friendship developed between the two very different characters that lasted until Gaul's death in 1921 - and beyond. With great foresight, the artist had set up an estate committee, with Paul Cassirer as the determining figure. The committee disposed of the replicas of his designs and thus contributed decisively to maintaining the artist's reputation
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VAT margin scheme, VAT included, but must not be indicated, not refundable
32% buyer’s premium on the hammer price
The benefit auction has a 0% premium on the hammer price.
32% buyer’s premium on the hammer price
The benefit auction has a 0% premium on the hammer price.
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Stock Id: 77374-3