Giovanni Nicolini Jr. - Doves

bronze, cm 20 x 31 x 22

Signed on the base: "G. Nicolini j"
Provenance: Rome, private collection
Bibliography: F. Sapori, Scultura italiana moderna, Rome, Libreria dello Stato, 1949, illustr. plaster version, p. 377.

An important nucleus of the sculptor's animalier production is preserved in the artistic collection of the Istituto
Superiore di Sanità which, under the direction of Domenico Marotta (1935 - 1961), close to Giovanni Nicolini, has accumulated a series of sculptures and decorative objects executed by him and his son. The Mandarin Duck with elegant Deco lines is the only animalistic subject that bears the signature of Nicolini father, while the rest of the collection ascribable to this genre retains the signature of Nicolini Jr: a Rabbit ready to jump, a delightful Seal, two Monkeys locked in a tender embrace, a Gazelle, Rats, several bird specimens, including two Pigeons, a variant of the work presented here and illustrated in the volume by Sapori in its plaster model. If some animals show the choice to operate on the naturalistic detail of plumage or poses, in this bronze Nicolini prefers a synthesis effect that contributes to a serene balance between simplification of masses and realistic rendering. A harmonious and tastefully Deco work, it is striking for the pose of the pigeons, facing two opposite sides and perched in serene repose, their beaks resting on their breasts.