Wednesday, April 17, 2013
Carlton Hobbs LLC
The art of wax modeling can be traced back to the Middle Ages, when it was used for effigies, death masks and portrait miniatures. In Renaissance Italy, Florence, Venice and Naples were among the first centers to recognize the possibilities of using wax to imitate human flesh, arguably one of the earliest instances of hyper-realism in art. Some of these studies were portrayed with terrifying realism such as a Cadaver in Decomposition by the Neapolitan Gaetano Guilio Zummo, circa 1695. In later centuries, busts or life-size portraits were created from this pliable material, as were anatomical models, a practice known as moulage. Read more... (1532 words, 11 images, estimated 6:08 mins reading time)
This is a preview of An Extremely Rare Pair Of Wax Sculptures Of Gentlemen Dressed In Their Original Apparel
.
Read the full post (1532 words, 11 images, estimated 6:08 mins reading time)
Carlton Hobbs LLC
This cockerel is rendered with striking naturalism and elaborate attention to detail. Its feathers are highly refined and arranged in sections at intervals with subtly worked spaces in between, which gives the subject a strong sense of movement. The tension of the arched body, with its feathers seeming to have been inflated from within, conveys the excitement of the bird, who has just subdued its cunning prey. Even the various surface textures, such as the calloused feet, the flaccid comb and wattle, the scaly skin of the snakes and the covering of grass on the base, are intricately worked. The extraordinary technical skill of the sculptor is evidenced by the use of a single block of marble, a considerable achievement, particularly where the subtleties like the feathers, the complexly coiling bodies of the snakes, and the positioning of the feet of the bird are concerned. Read more... (1476 words, 6 images, estimated 5:54 mins reading time)
This interesting French petit-point needlework in the Carlton Hobbs collection depicts a voyage of Henri II of France (1519-1559). Henri, holding a crown and scepter, stands on the bow of a galley as it heads towards the sun and away from night. Two flags fly on the central mast, a tricolor flag of red, white and blue (colors associated with France since the Middle Ages), and above this a flag decorated with a crescent moon. The crescent was a symbol of Henri’s mistress, Diane de Poitiers, borrowed from the Goddess Diana, which he also adopted as his device.
Read more... (1255 words, 7 images, estimated 5:01 mins reading time)
Over the summer we brought you preliminary details on an important Aubusson carpet made to a design by Eugene Viollet-le-Duc for the Cathedral of Nôtre Dame de Paris in our collection. We are now very pleased to present the complete research for the carpet, which is currently on show in our booth at TEFAF Maastricht, Booth #271:
The design of the present carpet was the work of Eugène Viollet-le-Duc (1814-1879) for the sanctuary of Notre Dame de Paris in the 1860s.
Carlton Hobbs LLC Read more... (1101 words, 6 images, estimated 4:24 mins reading time)
This is a preview of A In-Depth Look At Viollet-le-Duc’s Work for Nôtre Dame de Paris, And The Aubusson Carpet Made to His Design
.
Read the full post (1101 words, 6 images, estimated 4:24 mins reading time)
Wednesday, February 27, 2013
While watching the season finale of PBS Masterpiece’s “Downton Abbey” last weekend, Carlton Hobbs staff member Dana noticed something curiously familiar in the background of one scene:
Scene from "Downton Abbey"
A porcelain-mounted torchère very much like the pair by Louis-François Bellangé in the Carlton Hobbs collection!
Carlton Hobbs LLC
For those not familiar, Downton Abbey is a British period drama about a fictional aristocratic family and their country house in England in the early 1900s. The house used for Downton Abbey on the show is actually Highclere Castle in Hampshire. Various other filming locations are used, and in this particular episode the family visits relatives at a Scottish hunting lodge, with many of the interior and exterior scenes shot at Inveraray Castle in Scotland. Read more... (283 words, 4 images, estimated 1:08 mins reading time)
This is a preview of For Carlton Hobbs, a torchère lights up an episode of Downton Abbey
.
Read the full post (283 words, 4 images, estimated 1:08 mins reading time)
Wednesday, February 20, 2013
Carlton Hobbs LLC
This rare pair of tables is a striking example of Pontypool lacquered tôle, one the eighteenth century’s most innovative decorative techniques. A closely comparable table in the collection at Colonial Williamsburg, dated to 1765 and with a rectangular top (figure 1), shares the same hand-punched pierced edging and eared corners of the present pair and is decorated with fruit and flowers in a style and composition closely related to that of these pieces. In addition, both the present pair and the Williamsburg table are raised on a lacquered baluster stem with three cabriole legs with pad feet. Read more... (561 words, 3 images, estimated 2:15 mins reading time)
The rococo style appeared in Italy later than in its neighboring European countries, and was highly influenced by French Louis XV design. In Venice, the republic had faded politically and commercially, however, it “excelled as the capital of taste, fashion and luxury, rivaling the reputation of Paris.” The rooms of the grand palazzi on the canals were outfitted with colorful frescoes, marble floors and sumptuous textiles. The interior architecture, of a sculptural quality, was reflected in the furnishings, which were brightly painted and elaborately carved.
Read more... (811 words, 5 images, estimated 3:15 mins reading time)
- Carlton Hobbs LLC
Tuesday, November 27, 2012
The first known examples of carved depictions of vagabonds and beggars date back to the second half of the 18th century and are specific to Val Gardena, also referred to by its German name, Gröden, a valley in the Dolomite mountain range of northern Italy. This town was well known for it’s cottage industry of wooden carving in which toys, utility articles and sculpture were made since the 17th century, and the present set of figures are most likely attributable to this region.
Read more... (281 words, 5 images, estimated 1:07 mins reading time)
These candelabra, which take the very interesting and uncommon form of human skeletons, belong to the genre in art specifically devoted to reminding us of our own mortality. “Memento Mori,” from the Latin “Remember you will die,” is a theme found in painting, sculpture and architecture, which reflects upon the transience of life and ephemeral nature of our earthly possessions. The most popular symbols found in these works are skeletons or skulls. Extinguished candles, urns of flowers and timepieces, such as clocks and hourglasses, are also present as reminders of our fleeting existence in this world.
Carlton Hobbs LLC Read more... (704 words, 4 images, estimated 2:49 mins reading time)
Friday, September 28, 2012
This tour de force of rococo carving is perhaps one of the most dynamic, expressive and free-flowing examples of sculpted furniture made in mid-18th century Germany. Its pendant is in the Museum of Applied Arts, Cologne (the Cologne table is incomplete, having had its stretcher removed and the original top replaced) and it is a testament to the quality of design and execution that it has been the subject of much conjecture as to its authorship among leading academics. Read more... (447 words, 5 images, estimated 1:47 mins reading time)
