Silvered bronze, stand (not vintage).
STATUE: Height: 25.5" - Height (on stand): 68.25" - Width: 8" - Depth: 7.5"
STAND: Height: 44" - Width: 10.25" - Depth: 10.25"
Signed M SIMARD, located PARIS and dated 1926 on the base.
This is likely the Mona Vanna sculpture exhibited by Simard in 17th Salon des Artistes Décorateurs in 1927. Its date (of 1926) proves that it is one of the artist's very earliest sculptures of this subject, and as such, one that is very rare and possibly one of a kind.
Mona Vanna (or Monna Vanna) is the name given to an unattributed drawing presenting a nude version of the famous Mona Lisa of Leonardo Da Vinci, which resides in the Musée de Condé at Château de Chantilly. During the 1920s, a new version of this subject—depicting a naked woman taking off her coat—became very popular, and can be found in the works of Franz von Stuck and many others. The character of Monna Vanna also inspired a theatrical drama created by Maurice Maeterlincks in 1902, which was later adapted into a successful silent movie in 1922.
The sculpture exhibited by Simard in Salon des Artistes Décorateurs of 1927 was published by Arthur Goldscheider, as we can read on the catalog of this event, who was an art publisher at 45 rue de Paradis in Paris.
