Patinated Bronze Faun with Tambourine, Émile Pfister, France Late 19th century

Patinated bronze sculpture depicting a dancing faun holding a tambourine, surrounded by several playful putti arranged in a dynamic composition. The group is set on an integrated rocky base with finely modelled details and balanced movement throughout.
Signed Émile Pfister on the base.
France, late 19th century.
Émile Pfister was a French sculptor active during the second half of the 19th century and the early 20th century. His work follows the academic tradition, with a focus on mythological subjects, allegorical groups, and figurative scenes featuring fauns, putti, and lively compositions. Pfister worked primarily in bronze, producing pieces with precise modelling, naturalistic poses, and balanced movement.
His oeuvre is representative of the neoclassical and late-Romantic tendencies in French sculpture of the period.