Buy With Confidence
For over a century, we've placed important art, rare jewels and exceptional objects with more than 14,000 collectors worldwide, and have been recognized by trusted publications including Robb Report, The New York Times, Wall Street Journal and more.
On Approval
Examine select works in person before you commit
125% Guarantee
Full credit plus 5% annual appreciation for five years
Trusted Expertise
Over two centuries of combined experience across our specialists
La Sorpresa by Cesare Lapini
- This statue is one of the earliest and largest known examples of Cesare Lapini’s La Sorpresa
- The celebrated model was exhibited at the Esposizione Generale Italiana in Turin in 1884
- Lapini achieves remarkable naturalism in the figure’s supple flesh, diaphanous drapery and hair
- Signed, dated 1882 and titled on the base
- Get complete item description here
To speak to one of our experts, call 1-888-711-8084
1848-after 1891 | Italian
La Sorpresa
(The Surprise)
Signed, dated and titled on the base
Carrara marble
This extraordinary Carrara marble sculpture by Cesare Lapini is one of the earliest and largest known examples of his celebrated La Sorpresa. Dated 1882 and standing over four feet high, the sculpture predates Lapini’s exhibition of the model at the Esposizione Generale Italiana in Turin in 1884.
Lapini captures a young woman. . .
1848-after 1891 | Italian
La Sorpresa
(The Surprise)
Signed, dated and titled on the base
Carrara marble
This extraordinary Carrara marble sculpture by Cesare Lapini is one of the earliest and largest known examples of his celebrated La Sorpresa. Dated 1882 and standing over four feet high, the sculpture predates Lapini’s exhibition of the model at the Esposizione Generale Italiana in Turin in 1884.
Lapini captures a young woman at the instant she has been unexpectedly observed, gathering her diaphanous garment around her body in a spontaneous gesture of modesty and surprise. The subject provided the sculptor with a formidable technical challenge. Supple flesh, translucent folds of fabric, delicate lace and individual tendrils of hair are all carved from a single material, yet each assumes a distinct texture. The figure’s polished skin contrasts with the intricate surface of her garment, demonstrating Lapini’s command of the demanding medium of Carrara marble.
Born in Florence in 1848, Lapini specialized in allegorical and genre sculpture, portrait busts and works inspired by antiquity. His virtuoso marbles found an international clientele among travelers and collectors visiting Florence, and his successful workshop produced sculptures for buyers throughout Europe and the United States. Contemporary writer Angelo De Gubernatis singled out La Sorpresa among Lapini’s most notable sculptures in his 1889 Dizionario degli Artisti Italiani Viventi. Lapini’s work is also represented in the Musée d’Orsay, whose collection includes his marble group Deux enfants.
La Sorpresa became one of Lapini’s defining compositions. Its success led to further versions in varying sizes. This example, dated two years before the Turin exhibition, represents an unusually early and monumental realization of the celebrated subject.
Dated 1882
50 1/2" high x 15" wide x 21" deep (128.27 x 38.10 x 53.34 cm)
Provenance:
Private collection, United States
M.S. Rau, New Orleans
Literature:
Alfonso Panzetta, Nuovo Dizionario degli Scultori Italiani dell’Ottocento e del primo Novecento: Da Antonio Canova ad Arturo Martini, Torino: Adarte, 2003, p. 513
Exhibited:
Turin, Esposizione Generale Italiana, 1884 (the model)
Buy With Confidence
For over a century, we've placed important art, rare jewels and exceptional objects with more than 14,000 collectors worldwide, and have been recognized by trusted publications including Robb Report, The New York Times, Wall Street Journal and more.
On Approval
Examine select works in person before you commit
125% Guarantee
Full credit plus 5% annual appreciation for five years
Trusted Expertise
Over two centuries of combined experience across our specialists
