Monumental vase resting on a pedestal with a wide ring-shaped collar.

Bronze proof with brown patina tinged with green, complete with its removable zinc receptacle.

Circa 1890.

Signed Joseph CHÉRET and bearing the mark of the publisher E. Soleau, Editr Parison the pedestal and titled in bas-relief LA PÊCHE EST OUVERTE (FISHING IS OPEN) in the lower part.

Height: 80 cm

History:

Brother of poster artist Jules Chéret (1836-1932), Joseph Gustave Chéret was a French sculptor with a unique style, whose work foreshadowed the emergence of Art Nouveau. Trained by Albert-Ernest Carrier-Belleuse (1824-1887), he produced numerous sculptures, statuettes, and sculpted groups, as well as vases decorated with figures and scenes in high relief. Our spectacular bronze proof with its rich, nuanced patina, entitled La Pêche est ouverte (The Fishing Season is Open), features a frieze depicting numerous young women fishing together in a sensual and joyful atmosphere.

Public collection and related work:

Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, Ohio, United States – A similar model in bronze with a green patina tinged with brown is kept in the collections of this institution under inventory number 1977.78, following a donation by Mr. and Mrs. Noah L. Butkin.

Exhibitions and related works:

- Salon des Artistes Français – Palais des Champs-Élysées, Paris, 1890. The plaster of the model was exhibited at this event.

- Year in Review: 1977 – The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, Ohio, December 28, 1977, to January 22, 1978. The model kept at the Cleveland Museum of Art was exhibited at this event.

Bibliography:

- Explication des ouvrages de peinture, sculpture, architecture, gravure et lithographie des artistes vivants exposés au Palais des Champs-Elysées – Société d'imprimerie et libraire administratives et classiques Paul Dupont, Paris, 1890. The plaster of the model referenced under number 4638 in the catalog, in the section Engraving on medals and precious stones, page 364.

- Catalogue des œuvres originales composant l’œuvre de Joseph Chéret, sculpteur décorateur – Auction catalog of the sale organized by Me G. Duchesne at the Hôtel Drouot on Wednesday 26, Thursday 27, Friday 28, and Saturday 29 December 1894. A bronze proof of the model – possibly ours – referenced under number 131 in the catalog and cited on page 27 in the “Bronzes” section.

- Sherman E. Lee – The Year in Review for 1977 in The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art – Volume 65, No. 1 of January 1978. The model kept in Cleveland is reproduced on page 25 and listed as number 8 in the catalog.

- Paul Arthur – French Art Nouveau Ceramics: An Illustrated Dictionary – Éditions Norma, Paris, 2015. A similar model, translated into ceramics by Théodore Deck, is reproduced on page 108.

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