Lot 825 | Nikolaus Friedrich | Bow Tensioner (Der Bogenspanner or Le tendeur d'arc)

FRIEDRICH, NIKOLAUS
1865 Cologne - 1914 Berlin

Title: Bow Tensioner (Der Bogenspanner or Le tendeur d'arc).
Technique: Bronze, dark brown patinated.
Height: 90cm.
Notation: Inscribed sideways: N. Friedrich.

Provenance:
Private ownership, Germany.

Nicolaus Friedrich enjoyed the first years of his training in his home town Cologne before subsequently working abroad for several years. From 1891 to 1893 he worked on the creation of decorations for the Chicago World's Fair of 1893. From this year onwards, the artist, who is known today primarily as a sculptor, devoted himself to studying at the Royal Academy of Arts in Berlin, where he was awarded the so-called Prix de Rome for his extraordinary talent. The scholarship enabled him to travel extensively through the great art metropolises.

In 1900, Friedrich's works were awarded prizes at the Paris World Exhibition. The Berlin National Gallery acquired two of his works in 1902 and 1905 - among them his famous statuette "Bow Tensioner", which was placed in front of the National Gallery. The present sculpture has a secure sense of beauty of proportion. Friedrich presents the athlete in supreme tension. Deeply absorbed in the moment, he seems to want to feel the tension of his bow. The intense concentration is also evident in his face. The naked body shines through the meticulous and fine elaboration of the athlete's muscles. The convex curvature of the bow is reflected in the posture of the "Bow Tensioner" and, through the open outline of the bronze, generates a substantial dynamic that takes on new dimensions depending on the perspective.