The See-Saw
Artist: Claude Michel, called Clodion (French, 1738-1814)
Date: about 1775
Dimensions:
17 1/2 x 16 1/4 in. (44.5 x 41.3 cm)
Medium: terracotta
Classification: Sculpture
Credit Line: Purchased with funds from the Libbey Endowment, Gift of Edward Drummond Libbey
Object number: 1957.16
Label Text:The lively tabletop terracotta sculptures of Claude Michel, known as Clodion, combined the 18th-century Neoclassical interest in Greek and Roman antiquity and mythological subjects with the Rococo taste for playful romantic themes. In this sculpture, a lusty satyr lofts a nymph into the air on a makeshift see-saw, while little cherubs, or putti, attempt to tip the balance.
Eighteenth-century French audiences would have understood this seemingly innocent child’s pastime as a metaphor for sexual abandon. The sensuality of the subject is underscored by Clodion’s rapid execution, with the marks of his modeling tools and of his fingers still evident in the clay. The “unfinished” aesthetic of his terracotta sculptures, with their use of the natural color of the clay and their emphasis on texture, added to their intimate appeal for the French aristocracy.
Eighteenth-century French audiences would have understood this seemingly innocent child’s pastime as a metaphor for sexual abandon. The sensuality of the subject is underscored by Clodion’s rapid execution, with the marks of his modeling tools and of his fingers still evident in the clay. The “unfinished” aesthetic of his terracotta sculptures, with their use of the natural color of the clay and their emphasis on texture, added to their intimate appeal for the French aristocracy.
On view
In Collection(s)