Renato Bertelli (1900-1974) - Profilo continuo del Duce
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€ 52
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Selected by Giulia Couzzi
Master’s in culture and arts innovation, with a decade in 20th-21st century Italian art.
Estimate € 300 - € 400
 | €52 | |
|---|---|---|
 | €47 | |
| €42 | |
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Italian artist Renato Bertelli (1900–1974) created a silver-finish resin reproduction titled Profilo continuo del Duce, a 1933 Futurist-inspired work mounted on a black lacquered wood base, measuring 18 cm high by 10 cm wide and 10 cm deep, weighing 1.2 kg, in excellent condition and unsigned.
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Description from the seller
This is a rare reproduction of the famous 1933 masterpiece entitled 'Continuous Profile of the Duce', designed by the Italian artist Renato Bertelli (1900 - 1974), who was an important representative of the modern art movement of Futurism, which took hold during Mussolini's regime.
At first glance, this does not look like a bust, but a closer look reveals with wonder from every side of this artwork the characteristic profile of Mussolini with his powerful jawline.
Hence the title 'Continuous Profile of the Duce', since Mussolini's profile is continuously recognizable (at 360 degrees) no matter which side the object is turned: the profile remains visible from left, right, front and back!
The ingenious design was considered (and still is) very innovative, avant-garde and progressive for that era, and it recalls similarities with a mechanical component of the machine age, which meshed with the self-proclaimed image of Mussolini as defender of the working class.
The bust, very unusual in design, was also a symbol of the "omnipresent leader who always held everything and everyone under control".
The Italian art critic Marco Moretti expressed it thus: 'The dynamic plasticity of this Duce's profile, visible from every point, launched—without rhetoric—the metaphor of a vigilant and sleepless leader who sees and protects everything.'
The concept here is tied to the design of stop-motion photography, and this did not escape the famous photographer Robert Mapplethorpe: he produced a famous artistic photo of an exemplar of this bust (see Google 'Mapplethorpe Mussolini bust').
This resin reproduction is outstanding in appearance and quality because it is finished with a silver-tone coating and mounted on a black ceramic base.
The resin bust is 14 cm tall and is firmly mounted on the base, which is 4 cm high and made of black lacquered wood; the entire object (two parts together) is 18 cm tall, 10 cm wide and 10 cm deep, and weighs 1.2 kilograms.
The object is shipped immediately after purchase with Track & Trace shipping, well packaged.
This is a rare reproduction of the famous 1933 masterpiece entitled 'Continuous Profile of the Duce', designed by the Italian artist Renato Bertelli (1900 - 1974), who was an important representative of the modern art movement of Futurism, which took hold during Mussolini's regime.
At first glance, this does not look like a bust, but a closer look reveals with wonder from every side of this artwork the characteristic profile of Mussolini with his powerful jawline.
Hence the title 'Continuous Profile of the Duce', since Mussolini's profile is continuously recognizable (at 360 degrees) no matter which side the object is turned: the profile remains visible from left, right, front and back!
The ingenious design was considered (and still is) very innovative, avant-garde and progressive for that era, and it recalls similarities with a mechanical component of the machine age, which meshed with the self-proclaimed image of Mussolini as defender of the working class.
The bust, very unusual in design, was also a symbol of the "omnipresent leader who always held everything and everyone under control".
The Italian art critic Marco Moretti expressed it thus: 'The dynamic plasticity of this Duce's profile, visible from every point, launched—without rhetoric—the metaphor of a vigilant and sleepless leader who sees and protects everything.'
The concept here is tied to the design of stop-motion photography, and this did not escape the famous photographer Robert Mapplethorpe: he produced a famous artistic photo of an exemplar of this bust (see Google 'Mapplethorpe Mussolini bust').
This resin reproduction is outstanding in appearance and quality because it is finished with a silver-tone coating and mounted on a black ceramic base.
The resin bust is 14 cm tall and is firmly mounted on the base, which is 4 cm high and made of black lacquered wood; the entire object (two parts together) is 18 cm tall, 10 cm wide and 10 cm deep, and weighs 1.2 kilograms.
The object is shipped immediately after purchase with Track & Trace shipping, well packaged.
Details
Era
1900-2000
Country of origin
Italy
Style
Realism
Material
Resin, Wood
Artist
Renato Bertelli (1900-1974)
Title of artwork
Profilo continuo del Duce
Signature
Not signed
Colour
Silver
Condition
Excellent condition
Height
18 cm
Width
10 cm
Depth
10 cm
Weight
1.2 kg
