Lots 532 to 535 - Joseph GAZAN (1891-1985) Originally... - Lot 531 - De Baecque et Associés

Lot 531.2
Go to lot
Lots 532 to 535 - Joseph GAZAN (1891-1985) Originally... - Lot 531 - De Baecque et Associés
Lots 532 to 535 - Joseph GAZAN (1891-1985) Originally from Nice, Joseph Gazan moved to Paris and entered the studio of the sculptor Jean Boucher (1870-1939) at the École Nationale des Beaux-Arts. Very quickly, the young sculptor adopted the style of the new generation of artists active in Paris at the beginning of the 20th century, such as Bourdelle (1861-1929) whose inspiration can be seen in his group Bacchante et satyres (lot 532). He is especially passionate about the Art Deco style and, during his training, met the famous Romanian sculptor Demetre Chiparus (1886-1947) with whom he collaborated in the execution of chryselephantine statuettes. The work of Alfred Janniot (1889-1969), considered one of the leaders of the Art Deco movement, also greatly influenced his work, particularly in the decoration of his reliefs (Orpheus, lot 533). During the interwar period, the Music-Hall attracted the Tout-Paris and was an inexhaustible source of inspiration for artists: was it for fun or for a project that Joseph Gazan executed the model of the Folies Bergères staircase (lot 536) from which the most iconic dancers such as Josephine Baker (1906-1975) and Mistinguett (1875-1956) descended? The year 1937 seems to be a turning point in the artist's career. Joseph Gazan created the sculpted decor for the Côte d'Azur pavilion at the Paris International Exhibition. On the façade of this pavilion, we find the definitive figure of the Docker, the model of which was kept in the artist's studio (lot 537). While still attached to the Art Deco movement, his work is oriented towards a more official art for commissions from his home region. Back in his native town, Joseph Gazan frequented artistic and literary circles where he met the historian and poet Louis Cappatti (1886-1966) who paid homage to him in one of his poems ("À Villefranche" in the collection La Gerbe nouée of 1952). The popularity of the sculptor led him to execute portraits of the personalities of Nice society (Presumed portrait of Jean Médecin [lot 542], portraits of men and women). After the Second World War, his success in Paris enabled him to obtain numerous official commissions. In 1954, the city of Menton entrusted Joseph Gazan with the execution of the new memorial to Queen Victoria. The inauguration took place in 1960 in the presence of Lady Patricia Ramsay, granddaughter of the queen. He also created the statues of King George V in Nice and restored the one of Queen Victoria in Cimiez. Always in the Art Deco vein that he appreciated so much, Gazan collaborated with regional architects to decorate buildings in Nice. He worked in particular with Honoré Aubert (1885-1974), of whom he made a plaster bust (lot 543), for the façade of one of the buildings of the Roland Garros college, and with Louis Milon de Peillon (1892-1971) for the panels of the entrance hall of the "Eden" building. Thanks to the "1% artistic" policy implemented in 1951, Gazan participated in the development of his region and responded to post-war urban planning orders. He decorated the pediments of the Saint Barthélémy elementary school and the École supérieure du professorat et de l'éducation in Nice. The numerous models preserved in his workshop show the extent of his attachment to his region, in particular through the model of a fountain with a triton and mermaids (lot 547), the project for a monument to Joan of Arc intended for the square of the church of Le Voeu, or the project for a relief depicting Comedy, Tragedy and History for the Théâtre de Verdure in Nice (lot 549). The plaster figure of Christ (lot 550) and the bust of the Virgin (lot 552) are also projects for religious or funerary monuments intended to be installed in cemeteries or churches. Through his sculptural work, Gazan skillfully pays homage to his region and to contemporary artists admired in Paris by imagining groups, Orpheus or the Niçoise (lot 554), which evoke Alfred Janniot, Joseph Bernard (1866-1931) and Aristide Maillol (1861-1944).
My orders
Sale information
Sales conditions
Return to catalogue