Object of the Day: “Doux Retour” by Émile Bruchon, 1890

In many ways, along with the Moreau brothers, the work of Émile Bruchon epitomizes the French Belle Époque sculptural style. Seeming weightlessness, flowing garments, delicately rendered vegetation and beatific expressions define the spirit of the era.


Doux Retour (Sweet Return) is another allegory of Spring—a favorite theme of Nineteenth Century French artists. Here we see a female figure—young and lithe—who appears to be landing with gentle grace to the earth. She wears a diadem reminiscent of Diana, the Goddess of the Hunt. As she alights, her gown catches the breeze. She bears a bouquet of newly blossomed flowers in her right hand and cradles a branch, heavy with ripe apples—in her left.

The replication of motion was one of the hallmarks of Bruchon’s work. From the movement of her garments to the power in her limbs, this sculpture speaks of energy. Even her face appears to be captured mid-expression as if she’s about to smile broadly.

Artists of this period were interested in capturing a single moment in time. Bruchon has achieved just that with this solid snapshot of the changing of the seasons.

Objects of the Day: A Pair of Sculptures by Emile Bruchon

Emile Bruchon was considered one of the greatest French Belle Époque sculptors. He worked from 1880-1910, creating works known for their fluidity and seeming weightlessness. This pair of sculptures demonstrate Bruchon’s signature balance and naturalism. Both signed by the artist, the male figure is entitled, L’Agriculture and the female is called, La Navigation.

He rests, precariously mounted on a stack of grain, his leg supported by a scythe and hold a stalk of wheat aloft. She is supported by the clouds, snatching a star from the sky. Cast in spelter, these two figures both seem to breathe in their clinging wraps and show expressions that are at once determined and benign. On their matching rosewood bases, they were obviously meant to be displayed together, and, so they remain, one hundred thirty years later—forever friends unified in their personification of two of the concepts that defined their country of origin.