The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of April 25, 2024

Faithful Love

Faithful Love

1800s
(French, 1730–1809)
France, 19th century
marble
without base: 26 x 10.9 x 10 cm (10 1/4 x 4 5/16 x 3 15/16 in.)
Gift of Grace Rainey Rogers in memory of her father, William J. Rainey 1942.54.2
Location: not on view

Description

These statuettes represent the opposing spectrums of love -- fickle and faithful -- both portrayed by Cupid. Fickle Love absent-mindedly plays with a butterfly, a symbol of the fleeting moment. Conversely, Faithful Love is accompanied by a dog, the ultimate loyal companion. These works were originally believed to be by the hand of Augustin Pajou, because the works are signed and he made nearly identical sculptures. However, owing to the slightly clumsy execution and the awkward scale of the signatures, the museum now believes the statuettes to have been created by another artist after Pajou's design. -- David Silvernail (April 2012)
  • Baron Maurice de Rothschild, Paris;
    [Arnold Seligmann, Rey & Co., Inc, NY, 1917];
    Grace Rainey Rogers, New York.
  • Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, The Eighteenth Century, April 26-May 31, 1950, p. 20, no.108.
  • {{cite web|title=Faithful Love|url=false|author=Augustin Pajou|year=1800s|access-date=25 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1942.54.2