Alberto Shayo – författare

This illustrated volume examines Chiparus' work as an embodiment of the art deco style and explores the various contemporary inspirations for the sculptor's art.

This is a study of the life and work of Demetre Chiparus, the master of chryselephantine sculpture, and one of Art Deco's greatest sculptors. Born in Romania, Demetre Chiparus (1886-1947) studied in Italy and France, settling in Paris, where he perfected the cryselephantine technique, working in bronze, ivory and other media. Produced as multiples, his works were greatly admired as small-scale decorative objects, and today are considered as some of the best sculpture of the Art Deco period. This illustrated book examines Chiparus's work as an embodiment of the Art Deco style. The author defines Art Deco and its precedents - Art Nouveau, Cubism and Futurism - and describes the various contemporary inspirations for Chiparus's art, including haute couture, the music hall, Diaghilev's ballets, and the stage designs of Leon Bakst. This study of this little-known master, including previously unpublished details about the artist's life, and a chapter on Chiparus's materials and methods, provides useful source material on chryselephantine sculpture.

This new and updated edition adds new figures as well as historic documents. Of particular interest is the discovery of the long-lost marble figure Polar Bear last seen over 75 years ago in Paris, where it was exhibited for the first and last time at the 1943 Salon des Artistes Français. Accompanying images of this important discovery are presented in this edition for the very first time. Over 26 years ago the first publication of Chiparus: Master of Art Deco brought this artist into the public eye. His name, lost in records and catalogues, was rejuvenated by Alberto Shayo's rediscovery of his works, effectively bringing artist and oeuvre back to life. The book dwells on the sources and inspiration of the Art Deco movement, with particular emphasis on sculptures created by Demétre Chiparus. Also available by Alberto Shayo:Roland Paris: The Art Deco Jester King ISBN 9781851498239Statuettes of the Art Deco Period ISBN 9781851498246

Monograph covering the work of Demetre Chiparus as both sculptor and painter.