Rare "Loïe Fuller Électrique" Musical Automaton by Gaston Decamps, c. 1914
With plaster-composition head depicting a woman with classical profile, fixed blue paperweight eyes with lashes, curly brown hair wig, papier-mâché torso with modeled breasts and musculature, articulated waist and eight colored light bulbs beneath wire-framed skirt, dressed in translucent silk, embroidered velvet bodice with floral beadwork and ivy leaf appliqués, crêpe sleeves and headdress with pendant gilt medallions, on wood base containing electric motor (110 V), original electromechanical relays and four-air cartel cylinder musical movement, ht. of figure 28 in. (71 cm), 40 ½ in. (102 cm) overall. - Loïe rotates en pointe, swaying gracefully, balancing with her right leg and turning her head as her skirt is illuminated by a kaleidoscopic sequence of colors. Good working condition, mechanical and electrical functions overhauled, sympathetic restoration on forehead and one cheek. - We know of four examples of this model, and of these just two retain their electrical functions and illumination. Please note: due to its age and the flammable materials involved, this automaton should only be operated for short periods and always under close supervision! - Historical Background: The young Gaston Decamps, a gifted sculptor who had studied at École des Arts Décoratifs in Paris, drew his inspiration widely from the visual arts, performance and cabaret. His fascination with movement found expression in three exceptional kinetic portraits of female dancers who performed in Paris during the first years of the 20th century. The "Snake Charmer", "Cambodian Dancer" and "Loïe Fuller Électrique" share similarities in size, stature, facial sculpture and the large musical movements that accompany their routines. The catalogue of molds kept by Henriette Decamps is instructive in providing a timeline for this piece. "Buste Loïe Fuller" is listed as mold No. 650 (produced c. 1910) and the "Charmeuse de Serpent" appears somewhat later at No. 788. - Research published by Christian Bailly and Robbin Biggins has suggested Folies-Bergères performer Nala Damajanti and the court dancers of King Sisowath I, sketched by Auguste Rodin in 1906, as the inspiration behind the Snake Charmer and the Cambodian Dancer respectively. Loïe Fuller Électrique, however, is unusual in being based upon a named person. - Marie Louise Fuller (1862-1928) was a pioneer of modern dance and theatrical lighting techniques. An early career as an actress and singer in American vaudeville theater led to the unveiling of her Serpentine Dance in New York, however it was Fuller's debut at the Folies-Bergères in Paris on 5. November 1892 that established her reputation on the international stage. - Fuller appeared in an iridescent silk costume which changed color as she danced. Using bamboo sticks sewn into her sleeves and magic lanterns to project a kaleidoscopic effect onto the billowing fabric, she seemed to transform herself into swirling shapes that resembled butterflies, lilies and flames. - Her performances were feats of science as well as of dance. Fuller worked with luminescent salts, developed colored gel discs for projection lamps, and even experimented with phosphorescent materials for her Radium Dance. Author Rhonda K. Garelick describes how Fuller fascinated the world of academic science, cultivating a friendship with Marie Curie and gaining membership of the French Astronomical Society for her investigations into the physical properties of light. - Fuller the artiste was sketched by Auguste Rodin and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, photographed by Eugène Druet and filmed by Segundo de Chomón (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dda-BXNvVkQ). -She served as model for sculptors Pierre Roche and Théodore Rivière and a motif of the Art-Nouveau movement, influencing a generation of young female dancers that included Isadora Duncan. Yet away from the stage, contemporary accounts describe Fuller as ungainly, chaste and awkward. Gaston Decamps' undoubtedly idealised kinetic portrait of Loïe Fuller is perhaps one of the most fitting forms of homage to a difficult, shy and daring dancer. - A rare and beautiful automaton embodying Gaston Decamps's ethos that "l'automate doit être une sculpture animée". - References: Robbin Biggins, "A Cambodian Dancer Automaton", "Mechanical Music", 54-5, Sept./Oct. 2008, pp. 8-11. Rhonda K. Garelick, "Loie Fuller's Performance of Modernism". Claire Meade: https://queeratorial.wordpress.com/2017/03/08/loie-fuller-the-lesbian-electric-fairy-of-the-belle-epoque/ Metropolitan Museum of Art: http://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/287806 Special thanks to the Decamps-Bellancourt family for information from the company archive.

Seltener Musik-Puppenautomat "Loïe Fuller Électrique" von Gaston Decamps, um 1914
Modellierter Kopf aus Gips, Darstellung einer Dame mit klassischem Profil, feststehende blaue Paperweight-Augen mit Wimpern, braun gelockte Mohairperücke, Körper aus Papiermaché, modellierte Brüste, bewegliche Hüfte, 8 farbige Lampen unter dem mit Draht ausgestellten Rock, Rock aus lichtdurchlässiger Seide, besticktes Samtmieder mit floraler Perlenstickerei und Efeublatt-Applikationen, Crêpe-Ärmeln, Kopfschmuck mit hängenden vergoldeten Medaillons. Auf Holzsockel mit Elektromotor, elektromechanischen Relais und Walzenspielwerk mit 4 Melodien. Höhe der Figur 71 cm. Gesamthöhe 102 cm. - Loïe führt einen Spitzentanz aus, wiegt anmutig ihren Körper, balanciert mit dem rechten Bein und dreht den Kopf, ihr Seidenrock wird dabei in einer kaleidoskopischen Farbfolge beleuchtet. Gut funktionierender Zustand, die Mechanik und die elektrischen Funktionen wurden überholt, leichte Restaurierung an der Stirn und einer Wange. - Ein außergewöhnlich schöner und seltener Automat, er verkörpert Gaston Decamp's Ethos "l'automate doit être une sculpture animée" (ein Automat muß einen lebendigen Ausdruck haben). - Referenzen: Robbin Biggins, "A Cambodian Dancer Automaton", "Mechanical Music", 54-5, Sept./Okt. 2008, S. 8-11; Rhonda K. Garelick, "Loie Fuller's Performance of Modernism"; Claire Meade: https://queeratorial.wordpress.com/2017/03/08/loie-fuller-the-lesbian-electric-fairy-of-the-belle-epoque/ Metropolitan Museum of Art: http://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/287806

Start Price: EUR 8000

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