Dancing Girl
| Browse information by: Location Makers General Information Classification Object Parts Object Condition History References Photographs |  Author: Terry Sinnott Copyright for Photograph: Creative Commons |
Location
| Street: | Adeleide Crescent |
| Town: | Hove |
| Parish: | Hove |
| Council: | Brighton & Hove City Council |
| County: | East Sussex |
| Postcode: | BN3 |
| Location on Google Map | |
| Object setting: | Outside building |
| Access is: | Public |
| Location note: | Stood outside the door to 3 Adeleide Crescent (only plinth remains) |
| In the AZ book: | East Sussex |
| Page: | 131 |
| Grid reference: | L8 |
| The A-Z books used are A-Z East Sussex and A-Z West Sussex (Editions 1A 2005). Geographers' A-Z Map Company Ltd. Sevenoaks. | |
| Previous location: | Stood outside the entrance to the old Hove Town Hall (destroyed by fire in 1966) |
back to top | |
Makers
| Name : | Antonio Canova |
| Role: | Sculptor of original work |
back to top | |
General Information
| Commissioned by: | Sir George Donaldson |
| Construction period: | 1918 |
| Work is: | Lost |
| Owner custodian: | Anthony Rea |
| Object listing: | Not listed |
| Description: | Lifesize statue of a dancing girl barefoot in classical dress. Hands resting on hips with right hand holding the edge of her dress. Right foot forward and head turned to the left. Depicted in the act of dancing. |
| Inscription: | PRESENTED BY SIR GEORGE DONALDSON 1918. DANCING GIRL BY CANOVA (1757 - 1822) (REPLICA) |
back to top | |
Classification
| Categories: | Free Standing, Sculptural |
| Object type1: | Statue |
| Object type2: | Sculpture |
| Subject type1: | Figurative |
| Subject subtype1: | Standing |
back to top | |
Object Parts
| Part 1: | Statue |
| Material: | White marble |
| Height (cm): | 179 |
| Width (cm): | 76 |
| Depth (cm): | 67 |
back to top | |
Object Condition
| Date of on-site inspection: | 28/10/2008 |
back to top | |
History
| History: | The statue stood originally at the entrance to the old Hove Town Hall. After the building was destroyed by fire on 9 January 1966, the statue, undamaged, was bought by the writer Anthony Rea. It is a replica of a statue made for Empress Josephine in 1905 by Canova and was presented to Hove in 1918 by Sir George Donaldson (1845–1925), art collector and dealer.
(My Brghton and Hove) The original statue in white marble by Antonio Canova is in the Hermitage, Saint Petersburg. The dance was one of Canova's favourite themes and he executed several drawings, paintings, reliefs and statues on the subject. The statue, 'Dancer with hands on hips' has also been known by other titles including; 'Muse of the dance'; 'Nymph of the dance'; and even 'Erato, Muse of the dance of love' in one of his letters - he originally intended to add a figure of a faun playing a flute. The plaster model is in the Gipsoteca di Possagno and carries the date 'Xbre 1806'. The original marble, now in the Hermitage and from the Malmaison gallery was already commissioned by Giuseppina de Beauharnais in 1802. The statue was exhibited in the Louvre in Paris in 1812 alongside 'Terpsichore and Paris' and received with great enthusiasm. In the last years of his life, Canova executed a replica for Simon Clarke with slightly different hair. In 1822 this replica was exhibited in London and eventually became part of the Rothschild Collection and from 1968 has been housed in the National Gallery of Canada (Ottawa). A copy of the head of the statue in the Hermitage was executed and given to Lord Wellington by Canova in 1818. It is now housed in Apsley House. A figure similar to the statue can be seen in Canova's painting, 'Tersicore ed Euterpe' in the Gipsoteca do Possagno. Adamo Tadolini and Democrito Gandolfi both made copies of the statue. (Antonio Canova) |
back to top | |
References
| Source 1 : | |
| Title: | 'Antonio Canova' |
| Type: | Book |
| Author: | Museo Correr |
| Page: | 292-295 |
| Publisher: | Marsilio Editori. Venice. |
Further information: | |
| http://www.mybrightonandhove.org.uk/page_id__5860_path__0p115p188p941p.aspx | |
back to top | |
Photographs
Author: Terry Sinnott Copyright: Creative Commons |  Author: Terry Sinnott Copyright: Creative Commons |
back to top | |