VICTOR DEMANET (Givet, France, 1895 - Ixelles, Belgium, 1964). "The work". Bronze. Exhibitions

VICTOR DEMANET (Givet, France, 1895 - Ixelles, Belgium, 1964).
"The Work".
Bronze.
Exhibitions: "European sculpture in the 20th century", European Museum of Modern Art (MEAM), Barcelona, 2014.
Size: 90 cm.
Round sculpture made in bronze representing a worker holding his work tool in his right hand, while looking straight ahead in a static and unperturbed position. His naked torso, smooth and strong, is evidence that the protagonist is working with strength.
According to the catalogue of the exhibition held at the MEAM, "Victor Demanet was a student at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Namur. Despite his early recognition in the field, he abandoned sculpture to enlist as a soldier in the First World War. During the war, he was stationed in Brussels, where the discovery of Meunier's work acted as a revelation to him. This revelation was confirmed when in 1921 he travelled to Paris and became acquainted with the sculpture of Rude, Carpeaux and, above all, Rodin. It was then that he regained his passion for sculpture. In 1923 he exhibited his bust Napoleon in Arcole, which consecrated him and enabled him to obtain public and private commissions, including international ones, producing monumental works, medals and portraits of important Belgian personalities, such as the painter James Ensor and his master, the sculptor Désiré Hubin. His main themes were sport and, especially, the world of work, where he combined his two great influences in a personal way: Meunier's subject matter with a plastic treatment indebted to Rodin.