Lot 79: JACQUES DE BRAEKELEER

DE MAALTIJD VAN DE SCHILDPAD (NUDE WITH A TORTOISE)
signed and dated: Jυq De Braekeleer. Anvers 1869.

95cm., 37½in.

white marble

Salon de Bruxelles, 1869

Jacques De Braekeleer was a sought-after portraitist and celebrated for his public sculptures such as his monument to Quinten Metsys, but his marble nudes are arguably his most sensitive and appealing works. The present marble exudes charm and grace, as the gently spiralling form of the girl evokes a mood of repose. De Braekeleer has struck a skilful balance between the real and the ideal. The elegant gestures and poise of the nude are matched by a carefully observed naturalism in the curves and folds of flesh. Whilst De Braekeleer produced a number of sculptures on the theme of the seated nude, this appears to be the only known version of De maaltijd van de schildpad.

RELATED LITERATURE
M. Marx and C. Engelen, Beeldhouwkunst in België vanaf 1830, Kessel-Lo, 2002, vol. I, pp. 356-7