Hammer Price w/ BP
$3,900
| Lot #: 177 Franz Xavier Bergmann (Austrian, 1861-1936), Indian |
|
Bronze, cold-painted, on a naturalistic painted stone base. Stamped with the Bergman seal of a B inside an urn, inscribed: GESCHUTZ and numbered: 3539. Catalog Note: 'Cold-painted bronze' refers to pieces cast in Vienna and then decorated in several layers with so-called dust paint; the know-how for the mix of this kind of paint has been lost. The color was not fired, hence 'cold painted'. The painting was carried out mainly by women working at home, a typical cottage industry. |
| Ht. 22 in. |
|
Auction Date Sep 29, 2023 |
Details:
Franz Xavier Bergmann (Austrian, 1861-1936)
Franz Xavier Bergmann was the owner of a Viennese foundry who produced numerous patinated and cold-painted bronzes, Oriental, erotic, and animal figures, the latter often humanized or whimsical, humorous objets d'art. Bergmann was noted for his detailed and colorful work. He signed with either a letter 'B' in an urn-shaped cartouche or 'Nam Greb' – 'Bergman' in reverse. These marks were used to disguise his identity on erotic works. His father, Franz Bergmann (September 26, 1838 – 1894), was a professional chaser from Galbonz who came to Vienna and founded a small bronze factory in 1860. Franz Xavier Bergmann inherited the company and opened a new foundry in 1900. Many of the bronzes from the 1900s were still based on designs from his father's workshop. Bergmann is often incorrectly described as a sculptor, but he was not; he was a foundry owner. His workshops employed, on a temporary basis, many anonymous sculptors. Bruno Zach employed Bergmann to edit and cast some of his works, with some of the more erotic ones being signed as “Prof. Touch”, a pseudonym used by Zach. At the turn of the 19th century there were about fifty workshops producing Vienna bronzes.
Franz Xavier Bergmann was the owner of a Viennese foundry who produced numerous patinated and cold-painted bronzes, Oriental, erotic, and animal figures, the latter often humanized or whimsical, humorous objets d'art. Bergmann was noted for his detailed and colorful work. He signed with either a letter 'B' in an urn-shaped cartouche or 'Nam Greb' – 'Bergman' in reverse. These marks were used to disguise his identity on erotic works. His father, Franz Bergmann (September 26, 1838 – 1894), was a professional chaser from Galbonz who came to Vienna and founded a small bronze factory in 1860. Franz Xavier Bergmann inherited the company and opened a new foundry in 1900. Many of the bronzes from the 1900s were still based on designs from his father's workshop. Bergmann is often incorrectly described as a sculptor, but he was not; he was a foundry owner. His workshops employed, on a temporary basis, many anonymous sculptors. Bruno Zach employed Bergmann to edit and cast some of his works, with some of the more erotic ones being signed as “Prof. Touch”, a pseudonym used by Zach. At the turn of the 19th century there were about fifty workshops producing Vienna bronzes.
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