DIEGO GIACOMETTI (1902-1985) - FROM THE SUCCESSION OF Mr. AND Mrs. B. Biche, Arbre et Renard à l'affût, 1976-1978, variant of a model created for James Lord circa [1972]. Console sculpture. The base in antique-green bronze with a brownish tint (known as the Diego patina); the title decoration on the central strut. The top is lined with fabric (original). Glass top. Signed DIEGO and monogrammed on the left side spacer bar. Height: 85 cm - Length: 116.5 cm - Depth: 36.5 cm Important note: This work has been authenticated in accordance with the process established by the Diego Giacometti Estate. Provenance and history : Estate of Mr. and Mrs. B, Île-de-France. Acquired directly from the artist. Mr. and Mrs. B. were introduced to Diego Giacometti by Pierre Josse, to whom they were close friends. Mrs. B., of Belgian origin, was a painter and engraver in her spare time, and had a youthful friendship with the artist Colette de Sadeleer. The latter introduced the Bs to her sculptor uncle Pierre Josse, whose full-length portrait she had painted. Pierre Josse was also a close friend of Alberto and Diego Giacometti; three portraits of Pierre Josse by Alberto from the 1960s are known to exist. Several photographs by Henri Cartier-Bresson taken between 1960 and 1965 reveal the friendship between the two men. So it was only natural that Pierre Josse, also a close friend of Mr. and Mrs. B, put them in touch with Diego Giacometti in the mid-1970s. Mr. and Mrs. B were painting and printmaking enthusiasts who frequented Parisian galleries, and in the 1960s and 1970s acquired numerous original prints by major artists of the École de Paris (Villon, Estève, Hartung, Bram van Velde, ZaoWou Ki, Vierada Silva and Alechinsky, etc.). The commission for this console, Biche, Arbre et Renard (à l'affût) and a Torsade coffee table, was a brilliant addition to the ensemble and the high point of the project. Their son still remembers, even though he was around twelve years old at the time, going with his parents to Diego's workshop on rue Hippolyte Maindron in the 14th arrondissement of Paris to collect these works. Archives : Our console is described on page 1 of an inventory drawn up at the request of Mr. and Mrs. B. to establish insurance values by APPAP on June 29, 1982. Bibliography and related works: - Michel Butor, Jean Vincent (photographs) - Diego Giacometti - Éditions Adrien Maeght, Paris, 1985. A variant of our work, the console made around 1972 for James Lord, reproduced on page 126. - Daniel Marchesseau - Diego Giacometti - Éditions Hermann, Paris, 1986. A variant of our work, the console made around 1972 for James Lord, reproduced on page 92. - Le bestiaire de Diego Giacometti - Exhibition catalog, Galerie L'Arc en seine, Paris, September 24 to December 20, 1997, gallery edition. A proof of our model of Biche reproduced on page 25 and described on page 24. - François Baudot - Diego Giacometti - Éditons Assouline, Paris, 1998. A proof of our model of Biche reproduced in this book (book of photographs). - Christian Boutonnet and Rafael Ortiz, preface by James Lord 6 Diego Giacometti - Exhibition catalog, Galerie L'Arc en seine, Paris, 2003, Les Éditions de l'Amateur, 2003. A proof of our Arbre model reproduced on page 98; a proof of our Biche model reproduced on page 105. Please note: Resale rights for this work are the responsibility of the purchaser. Diego Giacometti's bestiary Full catalog entry PDF : https://cdn.drouot.com/d/catalogue?path=97/157064/679-cat-2024_12_04-N-MD.pdf