From left to right :
Flèche, 1950-1955
Bronze with well-worn green/grey patina, cast at time of creation as single exemplar, modelled from an exemplar sculpted in wood that has differences, bears the FS monogram, no founder’s mark, 211,5 x 45 x 22 cm, height 197 cm without base in pierre d’Occitanie added recently.
Colonne d’eau, 1959-1960
Aluminium with patina from natural corrosion, cast at time of creation, one-off piece, bears the artist’s signature, no founder’s mark, 209 x 33 x 33 cm, height without 202 cm wooden base used at the time of first mounting.
The 5/8 exemplar extends the bronze casting series of four exemplars begun when the sculptor was still alive; it is in production by the Fonderie Susse, with the approval of the Comité François Stahly. It is in fact the extremity of the preceding Chaîne d’eau, turned upwards.
Chaîne d’eau, 1959-1960
Bronze with well-worn green/grey patina, cast at time of creation, has neither signature nor founder’s mark, 400 x 15 x 15 cm.
The first casting of a series in bronze limited to eight copies, approved by the Comité François Stahly, to be numbered 1/8 to 8/8 with 4 artist’s copies, is under production by the Fonderie Susse.
Another posthumous casting in bronze is in existence, with a variant sunk in a bronze trough.
This Chaîne d’eau is one of four exemplars sculpted in wood, all of which are different. It began as a commission from architects Paul Herbé and Jean Le Couteur, for the creation of rainwater downpipes for the cathedral of Algiers.
Only two bronze exemplars were cast, because the commission was cancelled when Algeria became independent. Following which it saw service as downpipe at the sculptor’s studio in Meudon.