Ref.15276
Miguel Fernandez LOPEZ, known as MILO, The Diver, contemporary era

The Diver was executed by Milo at the end of the 20th or the beginning of the 21st century. Miguel Fernando López, known as Milo (born in Lisbon in 1955), is a Portuguese post-war and contemporary sculptor of international renown. He works for many renowned foundries and primarily creates small bronze sculptures. With The Diver, he is as interested in representing a sport as in depicting the human body. The sculpture portrays a naked man, crouching as if about to dive forward; this effect is enhanced by the height of the Portoro marble base and by the position of his hands, below the top level of the base. In his work, the sculptor is interested in the flexibility that the body can achieve and the twists it can undergo. In the case of The Diver, his position is not rigorous: a diver would point his hands towards the water, while here they are intertwined in a harmonious curve. Similarly, the man is not wearing a swimsuit, which elevates the work to the level of a representation of the nude, an academic exercise, and not merely a depiction of a sport. The artist does not neglect any detail and, although hidden at first glance, the face is of great delicacy. Milo also created an Athlete in a similar vein. Again, the sport is a pretext for the representation of the nude. The man is also crouched, but it is more difficult to determine what he is about to do; perhaps the artist has depicted the stage preceding the dive.

Ref.15589
Louis XVI style trumeau surmounted by a double laurel wreath

This rectangular overmantel is characterized by its double laurel crowns linked by a ribbon knot. The use of the laurel crown and ribbon motif is characteristic of the Louis XVI style. These crowns are complemented by other laurel leaves, arranged on either side of the crowns and extending horizontally. The laurel motif is repeated along the entire length of the overmantel, with a curved edge running around the structure.