Rare Italian Modernist Bronze Sculpture of General Sirtori by Enrico Butti

ENRICO BUTTI
Italian, 1847-1932

"Sketch of General Giuseppe Sirtori" (1891/92)

Lost-wax cast and patinated bronze, signed E. Butti to naturalistic base, cast circa 1900

17 1/2” H x 7 3/4” D x 6 3/4” W

Provenance: Paul Meile Collection, Switzerland; thereafter the Gilgore Collection, Naples, Florida

This work is a sketch for Enrico Butti’s monument to General Giuseppe Sirtori, erected in the Public Gardens of Milan. When the finished monument was discussed in L’Illustrazione Italiana on June 12, 1892, Butti noted that "The statue is in the modern style: a strong sketch more than a detailed work."

That quality is taken much further in the statuette Butti modeled, which is handled with much greater fluidity and surface liberty. Butti treats the figure with confidence, giving the pose a firm masculine presence, allowing the fall of the garment to strengthen the vertical movement of the composition. The surface is handled with quick, incisive modeling, using light and shadow to animate the form without lapsing into excessive pictorial effect. The result is direct and sculptural, showing Butti at his best in a mode suited to broad public monuments rather than minute expressive refinement. It is a distinct development from his earlier style, which was largely ecclesiastical and excessively realistic. In this sketch, to a greater extent than the monumental commission of Sirtori, Butti shows almost total disregard for his uniform and trappings - all emphasis is left on the nature and character of the man. Defiant. Dismissive. Defeated and yet undiminished. Proud and centered.

The plaster is held in the permanent collection of the Viggitesi Civic Museum and several bronze casts were taken from this sketch, now dispersed among private collections. The present example was long-held in the Gilgore Collection and is catalog no. 15 in their reference volume Chiseled with a Brush (p. 78, ill. p. 79).

General Giuseppe Sirtori was a prominent figure of the Italian Risorgimento rather than a military commander of the first rank. A former priest turned patriot, he fought in the revolutionary struggles of 1848 and became one of Garibaldi’s trusted officers during the Expedition of the Thousand, serving as chief of staff and distinguishing himself at Calatafimi and Palermo. His reputation rested on his association with national unification, personal courage, and service to the Garibaldian cause, which explains the public monuments and later naval commemorations bearing his name.

Enrico Butti was born on April 3, 1847 into a family connected to marble carving. His father, Bernardo, his uncle Stefano Butti and cousin Guido Butti were all sculptors and he studied under them before beginning his formal education. In 1861, Butti moved to Milan to study at the Brera Academy of Fine Arts where he studied under Pietro Magni.

During his early years in Milan, Butti supported himself by translating the works of other sculptors into marble, including pieces by Francesco Barzaghi, Ugo Zannoni, and Magni. This work gave him a deep technical command of the medium. He began exhibiting in the 1870s, showing one of his first major marbles, Raffaello Sanzio, at the National Exhibition of 1872. Two years later, at Brera, he exhibited Eleonora d’Este Visiting Tasso in Prison, now in St. Petersburg.

His early production included works such as Cain, Le smorfie, Stizze, San Gerolamo, Il mio garzone, and Santa Rosa da Lima for the Cathedral of Milan. In later monuments, the influence of Achille D’Orsi and especially Vincenzo Vela led him toward a more restrained and essential approach to his sculpture: eliminating anything excessive or fussy so that his work could have effect on the viewer in a single glance. Among his important works from this period were the angel for the Cavi Bussi tomb in the Monumental Cemetery of Milan, the Lombard warrior Alberto da Giussano for the monument at Legnano and The Miner, a work of social realism that earned him the Grand Prix and silver medal at the Universal Exhibition in Paris in 1889.

Butti received numerous public and funerary commissions. These included the monument to General Sirtori in the Public Gardens of Milan and several works for the Monumental Cemetery of Milan, including La morente of 1891 for the Casati tomb. From 1893 to 1913, he served as professor of sculpture at Brera. During this period and after, he completed major commissions including The Miners of the Sempione, La Tregua, and L’Unità d’Italia for the Vittoriano.

In 1913, increasingly affected by lung problems, Butti returned to his native Viggiù where he continued to work. His later production included Mater consolatrix for the Erba tomb, the Besenzanica monument for the Monumental Cemetery of Milan, the monument to Giuseppe Verdi in Piazza Buonarroti, Milan and memorials to the fallen at Viggiù, Gallarate, and Varese. From 1928 onward, he largely devoted himself to painting. Butti died on January 31, 1932 at his villa in Viggiù. In accordance with his wishes, its park now houses the museum dedicated to his work.

Condition: Very fine original condition. Minor wear to raised elements. Sealed in wax and ready to place.

ref. 601HJA23P