Gold and silver have long been the preferred materials of artists for making various pieces with varied uses, but bronze has been a convenient option, being like noble metals a perennial material. Generally, bronze is understood as an alloy made of copper with tin, aluminum, and lead, in varying proportions, hence the known “derivatives” of bronze, such as brasses and alpacas.
The craft of making bronze objects, such as statues, statuettes, medals, jewelry, and decorative art pieces, dates back to ancient times. Bronze was discovered, probably by chance, by the ancient Sumerians 3500 BC. From there it spread to Persia, then China and Egypt, eventually reaching Europe. Initially, sand molds were used, later replaced by stone and clay molds. In ancient times, Greek and Roman blacksmiths added zinc, lead, or silver to this alloy to manufacture various objects needed at the time. Gradually, bronze became a metal that enjoyed great respect from the aristocracy, as well as from artists. Its use in the medieval period intensified, and with the development of industrialization, from the beginning of the 19th century the number of bronze processing factories in the western continent multiplied. Bronze processing techniques include casting, rolling, forging, and extrusion, the result being a hard, highly resistant material that does not corrode easily.
In France, the bronze processing workshop led by Eugene Soleau, located on Rue de Turenne, 127, Paris, was noted. Bronze manufacturer, President of the Chamber of Bronzes, successor to the famous Louis Kley (1833-1911), Soleau made pieces that were distinguished by their beauty and exceptional quality. Although he was very involved in creative activity, Soleau was also known as the author of specialized books and draft laws published in France at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century. Study on the property of models of applied art in industry appeared in Paris in 1889 and brought Eugene Soleau notoriety. The author justified his approach by the appearance on the art market in France, but also abroad, of an increasing number of counterfeit pieces, which negatively affected people's perception of the quality of these products, to the detriment primarily of art, but also of industrialists. As an example, he mentions that the statuette "Triumph of Love" created by Jean Louis Gregoire (1840-1890) was reproduced in 100 thousand copies and sold in Europe and the United States. To discourage this practice of limitless imitation, Soleau proposed amending French legislation on this issue, by adding new articles to the laws of 1793 and later, in 1806. Soleau did not agree that "art ends where industry begins". To combat this expression and ensure that the value of art was not affected, he suggested a system of numbering the pieces in a series, thus limiting the quantity of objects in a batch. His recommendations eventually had an echo, being followed by important legislative changes in France at the beginning of the 20th century.
Eugene Soleau's way of working, his exceptional managerial qualities, and his interest in preserving the pure form of art, led the artists of the time to want a close collaboration with his factory. Among them, a special place was occupied by Gustave Joseph Chéret, a particularly talented sculptor and ceramist. Born in 1838, Gustave Joseph began studying sculpture at the age of only 13. Following the fashion of the time, at the age of 25, Chéret successfully exhibited objects created by him at the Paris Salon in 1863. The young artist's distinct abilities led the famous Baccarat to hire him in his workshop in 1877.
He made numerous model drawings for the Baccarat glass factory, as well as drawings for small and large sculptures. After only two years, Chéret obtained the Prix de Sèvres for the realization of a project for 2-meter-high vases. In 1868, Gustave Joseph Chéret married the daughter of Albert Ernest Carrier Belleuse (1824-1887). In 1886, he succeeded his father-in-law for a year as head of the Art Department of the National Manufacture of Sèvres. The Carrier Belleuse workshop was located at 15 rue La Tour D'Auvergne, less than 200 meters from the headquarters of the Chaboche factory. One of the workshop's regulars was Auguste Rodin, between 1864-1870. Among the pieces that established Gustave Joseph Chéret is the famous "Salamander" (originally called Mica), a circular and fan-shaped fireplace door patented in 1885 (patent no. 169875). Gustave Joseph's brother, the painter Jules Chéret (1836-1932), created the first poster for "Salamander". The ceramic, glass and bronze works of the master Gustave Joseph Chéret were remarkable works of art, in which the decorative motifs were very varied, starting from plant or zoomorphic motifs, putti caught in motion, to mythological scenes and allegories.
Although his pieces have decoration in light relief, meso-relief, bas-relief, Chéret specialized in high relief decorations, regardless of the support material, sometimes leading, erroneously, to the perception of an applied decoration. The creation of exceptional statuary groups was one of his essential concerns. The grace, beauty, perfection of these creations signed by Chéret were always fully appreciated. The creative activity of the artist Gustave Joseph Chéret ends in 1894. Chéret was honored in December 1894 through an exhibition with sale, organized in the lobby of the Hotel Drouot in Paris for a period of three days, an occasion through which many of the artist's bronze and terracotta pieces found new owners. The event was resumed in 2002, being hosted in the same place, but pieces belonging to several French artists from the beginning of the 20th century were exhibited for the auction.
The Peleș National Museum owns in its metal collection a piece signed by Gustave Joseph Chéret, cast in bronze in the workshop of Eugene Soleau in Paris, entitled "Idyll". It is a vessel with a circular base, a truncated body, reduced to the mouth, with a wide, profiled lip. The decoration, in slight relief, is arranged clockwise, presenting in detail a love story between a young woman and a lover. The narrative is composed of three episodes played independently of each other, but the rotation of the vessel creates the impression for the viewer that he is in front of a silent film from the end of the 19th century (initially, the author created this work on three bronze panels, measuring 33.30 cm x 16.30 cm, all framed in a single frame, forming a painting).
In the first composition, a young draped woman, barefoot, with her hair tied back in a bun, walks with a flower in her hand, a symbol of her purity of soul. Under the personified morning sun, which appears near a curtain of clouds, a cupid follows her, without her realizing it. The entire action takes place in summer, in a landscape strewn with flowers.
We notice in the following sequence small changes, thus, the lover is missing the bow on his shoulder. Shy, with his left hand raised to his mouth, flying after the young woman, the lover nevertheless dares to touch her waist, under the astonished gaze of the sun. The girl is obviously surprised, her gestures being expressive in this sense: the young woman's head is slightly turned towards the one who catches her unexpectedly, her hands tightly clasp the flower to her chest. The personified sun participates in the entire action, being in the girl's agreement, his large, round eyes also manifesting stupor.
The audacity of the lover reaches its peak in the third episode. The little putto kisses the young woman who has fallen to her knees. Her outstretched hands, the flower dropped from her hand, the body's facial expressions symbolize her resistance against the unfolding of this event. The sun is in harmony with her feelings, the disturbance of the star being manifested by the position adopted and the expression of her face. Being a symbolist work, the unfolding of events can be interpreted as a love film, in which the innocent young women are touched by the wings of love, ultimately letting themselves be its prey.
Although the piece does not have impressive dimensions, it is 21.5 cm high, the base diameter is 7.5 cm, the mouth diameter is 8 cm, the maximum body diameter is 9.5 cm, it stands out among pieces of art through the fineness of the details, the symbolism of the subject framed in the Art Nouveau trend, the attention paid to the execution technique. Joseph Chéret knew how to draw the attention of art lovers to important events in the lives of his fellow men, on which people were too hasty to reflect.
The use of the theme of love through a metaphorical lyricism transposed into the impeccable design of the work and the development of the subject in stages places the author among quality French creators.
Like any other piece created by Chéret, this one also bears the author's signature, placed between the last and first episode of the narrative, slightly diagonally, written in holograph, above the name of the foundry and the town: Joseph Chéret. E. SOLEAU Paris.