Pair of cold painted bronze Native American figures after Kauba

This superb pair of patinated bronze figures were made by Alfonzo Titze (Austrian, active early 20^th century) and cast from models by Carl Kauba (Austrian, 1865-1922).

The pieces portray a pair of Native American figures, standing atop a rough-hewn red marble base. Both figures are balancing on one leg, the first male attempting to hear something from afar and the other shouting. Their poses complement each other and create a charming story.

The first figure is of a brave, a Native American warrior. He is leaning forward, with an open mouth as in mid-sentence, and running. His head of long hair is decorated with a small feather headdress in a light brown colour. The sides of the trousers as well as some detailing on the shirt consist of vibrant red frills. The figure is wearing an animal fur boa and a white, yellow, and blue scarf woven with tribal patterns. Similar geometric patterns also adorn the figure’s shirt.

The second figure depicting a chieftain, the leader of the tribe is seen wearing traditional Native American clothing. His head is adorned with a beautiful feather headdress, ornamented with yellow, red, and green detailing. Similarly, to the first figure, the sides of the trousers and the bottom hem of are decorated with long, voluminous red frills. The underside of the shoe is marked with a circled ‘AT’ foundry stamp.

Both figures were made using the cold-painted technique whereby several layers of unfired dust paint were applied to the patinated bronze figures. The results were brightly coloured, with exceptional detailing like the pair of figures in Mayfair Gallery’s collection.

Carl Kauba was an Austrian artist, renowned for his cold-painted, patinated bronze depictions of the Old West. Kauba was inspired by the Wild West, increasingly collecting historical photographs and objects about it. This theme became the main inspiration for his bronze pieces, and it is what Kauba is most famous for today.

Exceptionally well executed using a complex decorating technique, this pair of patinated bronze figures would make a superb addition to one’s sculpture collection.

Brave figure: Height 31cm, width 16cm, depth 19cm
Chieftain figure: Height 28cm, width 16cm, depth 14cm