Romantic Bronzes

All Photos by Brenna Reistad

“Bronze”

“While the term ‘bronze’ is often applied to 19th century statuary, foundries frequently used copper alloys ranging across a spectrum from bronze to brass. Bronze, one of the earliest copper alloys in use, is currently defined as a mixture of copper and tin, while brass is a mixture of copper and zinc. When both zinc and tin are combined with copper, the alloy is often called ‘gunmetal’. Lead can also be added to any copper alloy, which can then be described as ‘leaded’.

The proportions of the metals in casting sculptures are carried for a number of reasons. This ratio of elements affect not only the color of the resulting cast but also the metal’s working properties. Adding either tin, zinc, or lead to copper lowers the melting point and increases the fluidity of the melt, improving the castability of the alloy. Adding the metals in combination can decrease the melting point even further. The addition of tin and zinc improve the corrosion resistance of the alloy and increase the hardness of the cast, however, higher quantities of tin can result in a very brittle alloy. In contrast, lead softens copper alloys, making them easier to finish by chasing and polishing. In addition to these technological and aesthetic reasons for selecting certain alloys, affordability may also play a role, as tin has historically been more expensive than zinc and lead.

Most of Barye’s sculptures in this gallery are made of an alloy with a high percentage of copper and small amounts of tin, zinc, and occasionally lead. Only a handful are true bronzes and brasses, containing significantly higher quantities of tin or zinc. The elemental composition for each sculpture is presented in weight percentages on the object labels. These percentages should be considered approximations as the analysis was conducted using a nondestructive technique, x-ray fluorescence (XRF), which measures the composition at the surface of the sculpture".

Antonie-Louis Barye

1796-1857

Abduction of a Sabine Woman (Primary Title)

Attributed to, Giovan Francesco Susini, 1585-1653 Florentine (Artist)

early 17th century

Italian

bronze

97.126

This sculpture is based on the famous 1582 marble sculpture made by Giambologna for the Loggia dei Lanzi in Florence (illustrated at right). Here, Giovan Francesco Susini was faced with the challenge of translating Giambologna’s daring, monumental marble into a small bronze. Such small-scale bronzes were eagerly sought by leading collectors throughout Europe well into the 17th century as examples of virtuosity in their own right both for their superb craftsmanship as well as for their expression of the ideals of Renaissance sculpture. In fact, the sculpture by Giambologna is usually considered today as the epitome of the Renaissance artist’s ability to bring remote stories from classical antiquity to vivid life. However, at the time, Giambologna himself suggested he had no interest in the ancient story but instead created the life-size marble as a vehicle for exploring figures dramatically interacting in space.