(Turin 1858–1928 Milan)
Niccolò da Uzzano, 1902–1903, bronze with a dark patina (lost wax technique), signed M Rosso, height 47,7 cm, (PP)

Photo certificate:
Paola Mola, Milan, 4 February 2011

Provenance:
Collection Gottfried Eissler (1862-1924), Vienna - acquired from the artist in 1903 (label inside bust)
Private Collection, Austria
sale Dorotheum Vienna, 18 May 2011, Lot 959
European Private Collection

‘Comparative works, which Rosso produced partly from his imagination and partly based on antique precedents, or rather on works of the Renaissance, served the artist as opportunities to compare with his own artistic production in order to make apparent thåe ‘higher truths’ conveyed by them.’ In his preoccupation with the Renaissance, Rosso arrived at his own innovative vision of a new, future sculpture. (exh. cat. Medardo Rosso, Frankfurt am Main 1984, page 188)

The correspondence between Medardo Rosso and Auguste Artaria dated April 1904 (Wienbibliothek, Artaria Archive, manuscript box 22.4) outlines the sculptor’s interest in antiquising sculpture which served as the basis for his works. The bust, ‘Niccolò da Uzzano’ belongs to this series; Uzzano (Florence 1359–1431) was an Italian politician and a standard bearer for Florentine righteousness/justice.