Jacob Grimm (sculpture)

Jacob Grimm is a sculpture of German philologist Jacob Grimm by sculptor Elisabet Ney. Completed in 1858, the piece is a portrait bust rendered in marble. The bust was modeled and carved in Berlin, but it is now held by the Elisabet Ney Museum in Austin, Texas.

Jacob Grimm
Plaster copy of the bust at the University of Göttingen
ArtistElisabet Ney
Year1858 (1858)
MediumMarble sculpture
SubjectJacob Grimm
Dimensions48 cm (19 in)[1]: 19 
LocationElisabet Ney Museum, Austin, Texas, United States

History

As a young artist in 1850s Berlin, Elisabet Ney studied under the prominent sculptor Christian Daniel Rauch. Rauch introduced Ney to various luminaries of the city, including philologist Jacob Grimm, the elder of the two famed Brothers Grimm. Grimm sat for Ney to compose his portrait in 1856, after which she developed the piece until its completion in marble in 1858.[1]: 18  The piece is now owned by the Elisabet Ney Museum in Austin, Texas, where Ney moved later in life.[2]

Design

Grimm depicts its subject in his early seventies, unclothed, with bare shoulders and upper chest showing. The front of the base is inscribed with the words "JACOB GRIMM." The piece blends neoclassical elements (such as the neutral pose and unincised eyes) with realistic details, such as wrinkled, sagging skin and a receding hairline; this blending of classicism and realism is an approach to portraiture that reflects the stylistic influence of Ney's mentor, Christian Daniel Rauch.[1]: 18  In this respect, Grimm is speculated to be representative of Ney's other works from the period, most of which are now lost (including a bust of Varnhagen von Ense and a medallion portrait of Alexander von Humboldt).[1]: 21 

References
  1. Cutrer, Emily Fourmy (2016). The Art of the Woman: The Life and Work of Elisabet Ney. Texas A&M University Press. ISBN 9781623494247.
  2. Lee Morgan, Ann (2008). Oxford Dictionary of American Art and Artists. Oxford University Press. p. 342. ISBN 9780195373219. Retrieved October 10, 2017.
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