Among the most celebrated productions of the Brienz carving workshops, the bear bench stands as a supreme test of the master carver's art — an object at once fully functional and entirely sculptural. This fine linden wood example, circa 1870, meets both demands with distinction.
The bench is supported at either end by a standing bear carved fully in the round with commanding anatomical authority. Each animal rises powerfully on its hind legs, head turned outward with open mouth — carved teeth and red-stained tongue rendered with disconcerting naturalism — forelegs extended to receive the seat rail. The posture is one of theatrical welcome, the dense, ruffled fur carefully differentiated across the body to reflect the underlying musculature and the coat's directional growth.
The back is a tour de force of pierced carving: a deeply undercut composition of sinuously interlaced branches forming a scrolling openwork splat of considerable complexity. Presiding over it is a strolling bear in high relief along the crest rail — head lowered, weight forward, entirely in command. The contrast between the controlled energy of his stride and the fluid ornament of the splat beneath is a composition of genuine sophistication.
Bear benches of this quality attracted sustained attention at the international exhibitions and world's fairs of the late 19th century, where the Swiss carving industry consistently demonstrated its technical supremacy to collectors and institutional buyers from across Europe and America. Comparable examples are illustrated and discussed in Swiss Carvings: The Art of the Black Forest, 1820–1940.
Condition: Excellent, commensurate with age. Linden wood mellowed to a deep, even tone throughout. Glass eyes intact on all three bear figures. Pierced splat and all branch-work complete with no losses. Open-mouth detail with carved teeth and stained tongues intact on both supporting bears. No restoration noted.
Literature: Jay Arenski, Simon Daniels and Michael Daniels, Swiss Carvings: The Art of the Black Forest, 1820–1940, Antique Collectors' Club, Woodbridge, Suffolk, 2006 — see fig. 225 (p. 140) and fig. 241 (p. 146) for closely comparable examples.
Dimensions: 44”width x 15”depth x 27”height
Among the most celebrated productions of the Brienz carving workshops, the bear bench stands as a supreme test of the master carver's art — an object at once fully functional and entirely sculptural. This fine linden wood example, circa 1870, meets both demands with distinction.
The bench is supported at either end by a standing bear carved fully in the round with commanding anatomical authority. Each animal rises powerfully on its hind legs, head turned outward with open mouth — carved teeth and red-stained tongue rendered with disconcerting naturalism — forelegs extended to receive the seat rail. The posture is one of theatrical welcome, the dense, ruffled fur carefully differentiated across the body to reflect the underlying musculature and the coat's directional growth.
The back is a tour de force of pierced carving: a deeply undercut composition of sinuously interlaced branches forming a scrolling openwork splat of considerable complexity. Presiding over it is a strolling bear in high relief along the crest rail — head lowered, weight forward, entirely in command. The contrast between the controlled energy of his stride and the fluid ornament of the splat beneath is a composition of genuine sophistication.
Bear benches of this quality attracted sustained attention at the international exhibitions and world's fairs of the late 19th century, where the Swiss carving industry consistently demonstrated its technical supremacy to collectors and institutional buyers from across Europe and America. Comparable examples are illustrated and discussed in Swiss Carvings: The Art of the Black Forest, 1820–1940.
Condition: Excellent, commensurate with age. Linden wood mellowed to a deep, even tone throughout. Glass eyes intact on all three bear figures. Pierced splat and all branch-work complete with no losses. Open-mouth detail with carved teeth and stained tongues intact on both supporting bears. No restoration noted.
Literature: Jay Arenski, Simon Daniels and Michael Daniels, Swiss Carvings: The Art of the Black Forest, 1820–1940, Antique Collectors' Club, Woodbridge, Suffolk, 2006 — see fig. 225 (p. 140) and fig. 241 (p. 146) for closely comparable examples.
Dimensions: 44”width x 15”depth x 27”height
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