Antoine Bourdelle (1861–1929)
The Virgin of the Offering, 1920
Bronze (cast by Fonderie Rudier)
McMullen Museum of Art, Boston College, Gift of Susan and Ted Stebbins in honor of Peter S. Lynch ’65
Antoine Bourdelle,
Virgin of Alsace, 1923, stone, Niederbruck.
This bronze is an early version of Bourdelle’s monumental stone sculpture erected in 1923 in Niederbruck, Alsace, to give thanks for Alsace-Lorraine’s return to France after World War I (see photo). The style reflects the artist’s admiration for French Gothic sculpture. The Virgin resembles the artist’s wife, Cléopâtre, who wore a similar scarf in her sculpture studio to protect her hair from dust. Bourdelle’s young daughter served as the model for the Christ child.
Nancy Netzer
Inaugural Robert L. and Judith T. Winston Director, McMullen Museum and Professor, Art History