Carl Milles
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"Poseidon"
Stamp signed at two places Milles postex and dated 1959. Posthumous cast. Foundry marks LR 20 Cire Perdue. Bronze, green patina. Height 110 (including stone base 152.5 cm).
Literature
Henry Cornell, "Carl Milles. Hans verk", SAK, 1963, the motif mentioned on page 76, and reproduced half-page page 78 (under the title "Sketch to Poseidon").
Erik Naslund, "Carl Milles, -en biografi", 1991, the motif reproduced on page 210 (under the title "A first sketch to figure Poseidon"), compare "Poseidon cockpit", mentioned on page 209-212.
More information
The Poseidon statue by Carl Milles is perhaps one of Gothenburg's most famous landmarks and a good representative of the artist's famous creations. Ancient and Christian mythology and Swedish history were often Milles’ sources of inspiration and the innovation lay in his personal interpretations of the motifs. Among other things, he borrowed stylistic features from archaic and Etruscan art and brought together the heavy materials such as bronze or stone with water and air by placing the sculptures on tall pillars or in fountains.
Milles started the work with the Poseidon fountain around 1925 and the well itself was ready and in place in 1927. However, it took another three years before "Poseidon", in 1930, arrived on site and then in a revised design. The catalog number is recorded in the literature as "a first sketch for the Poseidon figure" and shows Milles’ original first idea for the figure's design.
Artist
Carl Milles was a Swedish sculptor born in Lägga. He studied at the Technical School in Stockholm, at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris under Auguste Rodin and on study trips to Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. In Paris he came to stay for many years and made a living as an ornament carver. He studied the animals in the Jardin des Plantes (the Zoological Garden) and was strongly influenced by Auguste Rodin. Milles made a breakthrough with a monument to Sten Sture in Uppsala. He exhibited at the World's Fair in 1900 and was later given a solo exhibition at the Tate Gallery in London. Milles was professor of modeling at the Royal Academy of Arts in Stockholm. Well-known sculptures in public places signed by Carl Milles are the "Gustav Vasa" statue at the Nordic Museum, "Orfeusgruppen" outside the concert hall in Stockholm and the "Poseidonfontänen" in Gothenburg.
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