Henri Vian (1858-1904) - Pair of wall lights after Charles Delafosse

Henri Vian (1858-1904) after a model of Charles Delafosse (1734-1789).
Pair of sconces with two candle arms.
Gilt bronze.
Late 19th century.

Signed with the mark of the bronzier " H. Vian ".
Each sconce has a shaft formed by two brackets with facing scrolls, underlined by laurel falls, flanking a circular terrace with a flared base and decorated with a corolla of acanthus leaves and flames. A button with seeds finishes the shaft in its lower part. Two console arms, molded and highlighted with acanthus leaves, support two crossed garlands of oak leaves, each punctuated with a circular bobbin and a bulbous socket chiseled with foliage, channels and pearl friezes.

The model of our sconces is based on the creations of the 18th century bronziers who were directly inspired by the drawings of Jean-Charles Delafosse in the 1760's. The collection of engravings entitled Nouvelle iconologie historique, ou Attributs hiéroglyphiques... published in 1768, gave models that present the same powerful volutes flaring a shaft as those forming the two arms of light of our sconces.
The bronzemaker Henri Vian, grandfather of Boris Vian, reproduced these models with great virtuosity. The quality of the bronzes produced by the manufacturer of art bronzes and furniture was recognized throughout the late nineteenth century: he participated in the Universal Exhibitions of 1878, 1889 and 1900 and was rewarded by the gold medal in 1889.  He made the railings of the Arnaga villa, Edmond Rostand's residence in the Basque Country. He also worked on the Ritz Hotel in London and the Cour des Comptes on rue Cambon in Paris. His store was located at 5, rue de Thoriny in Paris, in the Hotel Salé, which houses today the Picasso Museum and the School of Arts and Crafts.


The drawing for this model is known : Maison Vian, suite of twelve projects of chandelier and sconce from the 19th century.