Antoine Bourdelle (French, 1861-1929) La Pathétique... Lot 12

Antoine Bourdelle (French, 1861-1929) La Pathétique 1929. Signed ‘ANTOINE/BOURDELLE' on the rock (left profile); monogrammed and dated ‘1929' on the higher rock (verso); titled on the lower rock (verso); also numbered ‘3' and with ‘SUSSE Fr(ères)/PARIS/ CIRE PERDUE' foundry mark at the base, bottom center left (verso); bronze with brown patina and partial gilding Height: 14 in. (35.6cm) Provenance Rhodia Dufet-Bourdelle, Paris. Acquired directly from the above. Collection of Robert A. Becker, New York, New York. “Nous sommes deux lutteurs qui ne se sont jamais séparés. Nos mains peuvent se serrer” “WE ARE TWO WRESTLERS WHO HAVE NEVER BEEN SEPARATED. WE CAN CLASP OUR HANDS” - Antoine Bourdelle After months of fatigue, shortness of breath and terrible stomach pains, Beethoven died in Vienna on March 26, 1827 at age 57, to what is thought to be hepatic cirrhosis. Appalled by such a miserable ending, Bourdelle decided to translate it, first onto paper, later through sculpture. He imagined Beethoven against a cross, and chose one of the musician's most tragic masterpieces, the Sonata Pathétique, as its title. As Guy Chastel points out, "the interpretation of this sculpture remains fairly secret." While it may refer to Beethoven's last project, an oratorio devoted to Christ's crucifixion, it could also illustrate the sculptor's famous words about Beethoven, “that deaf man who could hear God.” Either way, Bourdelle compiles all the drama of Beethoven's existence into one image. About it, Guy Chastel says: "The work is poignant. Beethoven is depicted as a plebeian, a solid labourer of rhythm, rigged up like Tolstoi. His lips are even bitter than anywhere else. Beethoven's life could be described by the curve of his mouth. His hand, such a powerful hand, the willing thumb grasp on to a partition, of which the leaves are spread out all over his body. The top hat rolled up at his feet, part of his coat flies off. Standing still, his