Sketch for Seated Lion

Description Barye has boldly modeled the basic form of the "Seated Lion" without indicating any surface details. Although no casts are known to have been made of this sculpture during Barye's lifetime, he kept a model for it in his studio. When a visitor once asked whether the model was finished, Barye replied that "it was finished enough." The celebrated bronze founder Barbedienne bought the model at the artist's estate sale in 1876 and immediately began to list it in his sale catalogues.

Exhibitions

• The Works of Antoine-Louis Barye. American Art Gallery (New York), New York. 1889-1890.
• Untamed: The Art of Antoine-Louis Barye. The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore; Philbrook Museum of Art, Tulsa; The Henry Morrison Flagler Museum, Palm Beach. 2007-2008.

Provenance William T. Walters, Baltimore [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; Henry Walters, Baltimore, 1894, by inheritance; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.

Inscriptions [Signature] Cast through from model twice: BARYE; [Signature] Inscribed: FB (for Ferdinand Barbedienne); [Number] Inscribed inside in white: W 107.

Credit Acquired by William T. Walters