Baudelaire 1904

Boleslas Biegas made "Baudelaire," a bronze sculpture, sometime in the early 20th century. The dark, almost monochromatic palette gives it this timeless, dreamy quality, right? It makes you think about the nature of materials, their potential for transformation. The surfaces have a real sense of flow, like the bronze itself was a liquid being coaxed into shape. You see how the forms seem to emerge and recede into each other? There’s a real tension between the figurative elements - the faces - and the more abstract, swirling shapes. Take a look at the way the bronze pools and gathers at the base around the portrait of Baudelaire. It's almost as if the weight of the material is reflecting the weight of his poetic vision. It reminds me a little of Rodin, though Biegas has this unique way of melding symbolism with pure material expression. Anyway, who’s to say what it all means? That’s the fun of art, isn’t it?