19th Century Terracotta-Patinated Plaster Bust After Carpeaux, The Neapolitan Laugher - 20½"

A 19th century plaster bust faithfully reproducing Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux’s expressive Rieur Napolitain, finished with a warm terracotta-style patina. It captures a spontaneous, joyful expression and a lively sense of movement, emblematic of Carpeaux’s break from academic rigidity.

Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux (1827–1875), one of the leading French sculptors of the Second Empire, was renowned for his dynamic and naturalistic style. A Prix de Rome laureate, he achieved lasting fame with works such as La Danse for the Paris Opéra and Ugolino et ses fils, distinguished by their vitality and emotional intensity. Le Rieur Napolitain, created around the late 1850s, is a lively study derived from his celebrated Pêcheur Napolitain (1857), conceived during his residency at the Villa Medici in Rome; versions of this expressive motif are today held in major collections, including the Musée d’Orsay in Paris.

This plaster version shows minor losses to the patina, revealing the plaster beneath, consistent with age and not detracting from its charm and expressive quality.