'Chanticleer'

Details

Albert Laessle (1877-1954)
'Chanticleer'
inscribed 'ALBERT-LAESSLE 1912 PHILA' (on the base)--inscribed 'ROMAN BRONZE WORKS N-Y-' (along the base)
bronze with brown patina
18¼ in. (46.4 cm.) high on a 2¼ in. (5.7 cm.) marble base

Provenance

The artist.
Private collection, Clearwater, Florida, by descent.
Gesner Fine Art, Largo, Florida, acquired from the above.
[With]Richard York Gallery, New York.
Acquired by the present owner from the above, 1996.

Literature

"Reviews and Notices," The International Studio, vol. 49, 1913, pp. 251, 255, another example illustrated.
J.E.D. Trask, J.N. Laurvik, Catalogue De Luxe of the Department of Fine Arts, Panama-Pacific International Exposition, exhibition catalogue, vol. 2, San Francisco, California, 1915, p. 440, no. 2508, another example referenced.
W. Craven, Sculpture in America, Newark, New Jersey, 1968, p. 544. R.M. Peck, "Albert Laessle, American 'Animalier,'" American Art Review, vol. 3, January-February 1976, pp. 76, 78-79, 84, another example illustrated.
J. Conner, J. Rosenkranz, Rediscoveries in American Sculpture, Studio Works 1893-1939, Austin, Texas, 1989, p. 107, another example illustrated.
T. Armstrong, An American Odyssey: The Warner Collection of American Fine and Decorative Arts, New York, 2001, p. 147, illustrated.

Lot Essay

The present work epitomizes Albert Laessle's fascination with animal forms and his skill in imbuing their features with an inherent liveliness. The artist depicts the physicality of the rooster but also its cocky attitude through stylized musculature and exaggeratedly bristling feathers, creating an accurate rendering but also an expressive piece. According to Robert McCracken Peck, this model was cast in an edition of six. One example appeared in the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts' One Hundred and Eighth Annual Exhibition in 1913, and the museum currently retains a cast in its permanent collection.

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