Armand Petersen for Bing & Grondahl. Rarely offered figure in the form of an elephant made of matt glazed porcelain, no. 2154

Automatic translation from Danish.

Armand Petersen (1891-1969). Rare figure in the form of a porcelain elephant decorated with matt white-toned glaze, design no. 2154. Made by Bing & Grondahl. Stamped monogram 'AP' and Bing & Grøndahl house mark from the period 1915-1947. H. 23.5 cm. L. 28 cm. 2. black.

Armand Petersen, considered to be one of the greatest French animal sculptors, was born in Basel (Switzerland) on November 25, 1891. He entered the Ecole des Arts Industriels in Geneva in goldsmith and the engraver class. In 1914 he moved to Paris to continue his studies before settling for four years in Hungary in the studio of sculptor Bela Markup, who introduced him to sculptural modelling.
The artist introduced him to the study of animals in the Budapest Zoo at a time when animals in art had become popular. Petersen's preference for animals manifested itself in 1925, when he joined Pompon's followers, who taught sculpture ad-vivum (from nature).

Pompon and Petersen are often compared, and rightly so, although the latter stands out by a constant search for animation of his models. The art critic Yvon Lapaquelrie wrote these few lines about him in his magazine L'Amour de l'Art. "He works on his material as if it were gold. Petersen's art has something religious about it. The spirituality that permeates his artwork gives it a unique cachet and sets him apart from other animal sculptors."
Always on guard, his ducks, rabbits and other species seem to be. The timid attitude of the 'Round back antelope', instantly captured, is no exception to the rule. It seems ready to pounce at the slightest sign of danger. This sculpture has been exhibited and was cast in bronze as early as 1928.

Armand Petersen received many orders from the French state and from foreign commissioners. A great many of his works, such as 'Hippo', which can be admired at the Musée d'Orsay, can also be seen in other national museums.
Source: Galleries Nicolas Bourriaud, Paris