Maternal Joy
Bronze with brown patina, mounted on a cherry marble base.
Petermann foundry stamp.
Charles Samuel (Brussels, 1862–1939) first trained with goldsmith Philippe Wolfers before studying sculpture at the Brussels Academy under Julien Dillens and Charles Van der Stappen. He joined the artistic circle L'Essor, whose members included Guillaume Vogels, Théo Van Rysselberghe, and Léon Frédéric.
Best known for the monument dedicated to Till Eulenspiegel erected in Ixelles, the artist was actively involved in the Belgian artistic life of his time and received numerous awards. His work, which ranges from public monuments to more intimate compositions, was highly successful.
This sculpture, entitled Joie Maternelle (Maternal Joy), perfectly illustrates this more intimate vein of his production. Through the gentleness of the gesture and the spontaneity of the attitude, the artist delicately expresses the universal bond between mother and child. The composition is reminiscent of Albert-Ernest Carrier-Belleuse's Virgin and Child, known as The Messiah, which also depicts a mother presenting her child in a gesture that is both tender and protective.
