Goldscheider Wien, Goldscheider - Cherc/J. Marcardier - Figure - 'Mignon' - Ceramic

For sale is a rare and splendid terracotta figure from the renowned Vienna manufacturer Goldscheider. It depicts “Mignon” (after Goethe), an iconic motif of the early Art Nouveau.
Object details
Manufacturer: Friedrich Goldscheider, Vienna.
Model number: 2072 (stamped).
Dating: around 1898/1900.
Size: Impressive about 60 cm (rare large version).
Material: Terracotta, with the famous Goldscheider “Poli-Bronzierung” (polychrome cold-painting in bronze-look).
Markings: On the reverse side, the piece bears the manufacturer stamp 'Goldscheider Wien', model number 2072, and the note 'Reproduction Reserved'. On the front side it is labeled 'Mignon'.
Condition: The figure is in a very beautiful, authentic original condition with an age-appropriate, noble patina. The fine details of the face and hands are wonderfully preserved. No rough damage detectable (see close-up photos).
Special feature: Due to its monumental size of 60 cm, this piece is an outstanding collector’s item and a focal point for any Art Nouveau interior. Goldscheider works from this era are represented worldwide in museums and major collections.

The character represents the tragic figure 'Mignon' from Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's novel Wilhelm Meister's Apprenticeship. She is often depicted as a melancholic young girl in a simple dress with folded hands.

This number is listed in the Goldscheider work catalog.
Reproduction Reserved: This French inscription means 'Reproduction reserved' and was standard for Goldscheider exports and pieces from this era.

Cream-colored shards painted in matte brown and green tones
Standing girl with long hair, very well preserved.

Goldscheider Viennese Ceramics
The figurines from the Vienna manufactory Goldscheider remain to this day among the most aesthetically pleasing products of their kind.
The reason for this is that most of them originated in a period that, in nearly every field, was characterized by an especially refined design—during the so-called Art Nouveau.
That Vienna, Austria's capital, should become the cradle of such artistic skills is almost a logical consequence of the Vienna Secession.
The artists' association founded by Gustav Klimt, Wilhelm List, Ernst Stöhr, and other prominent representatives of the fin de siècle regarded itself as a counter-movement to the rather conservative style of the late 19th century.
Also the "Goldscheider's Porcelain Manufacture and Majolica Factory," founded in 1885, adopted the new design variant.
After the bronze and terracotta figures produced here had earned countless international awards in the past, the heirs of the former owner Friedrich Goldscheider could devote themselves entirely to the development of a new style.
To this end, his brother Alois, his widow Regina, and the sons Walter and Marcell Goldscheider enlisted numerous young artists, among whom, in addition to Friedrich Gornik and Otto Hofner, were Ida Lehman and Johanna Meier.
The figures they created were modeled on historical figures, representatives of the local fauna, and ancient or religious role models.
In the course of Freud’s increasingly popular psychoanalysis and the changing social climate, Goldscheider’s Manufaktur produced more and more sculptures that today are regarded as typical representatives of Jugendstil (Art Nouveau) or Art Deco: women framed by botanical ornamentation, with expressions and gestures that appear lascivious or innocent.
They still rank among the most sought-after acquisitions for renowned porcelain dealers. We, too, are pleased to acquire products from this significant phase of European artistic creation.