François-Rupert CARABIN (Saverne, 1862 - Strasbourg, 1932) Springtime, circa 1905 Original plaster enhanced with wash Signed lower right: "R Carabin Size : 32,3 x 98,7 cm (with its original frame : 48,2 x 114,9 cm) Related literature : - L'Oeuvre de Rupert Carabin: 1862-1932, Paris, Galerie du Luxembourg, 1974, pewter model listed as no. 156, p. 215. - N. Lehni, E. Martin, François-Rupert Carabin : 1842-1932, Strasbourg, éditions Les Musées de la ville de Strasbourg, 1993, pewter model listed under n° 102, p. 103. In 1905, François-Rupert Carabin made three pewter door tops on the theme of the seasons: a young woman sitting on a bull represents Spring, a woman harvesting a field represents Summer and a woman on a vine represents Autumn. This series is part of the decorative arts practice of the Alsatian sculptor who moved to Paris to escape the Franco-German war. Our plaster, which is probably a preparatory model for the Spring, presents the codes of Art Nouveau so appreciated at the beginning of the 20th century, visible in Carabin's work.