(Lourdes 1960–lives and works in Paris)

Contorsionniste IX. 2007.

White bronze.

With the incised signature and number: CORDA 3/8, as well as with the foundry stamp: Fond. del Chiaro.

107 x 45 x 25 cm.

Provenance: Private collection Switzerland.

The sculptural work of Mauro Corda, born in 1960 in Lourdes, is characterised by figurative excellence in a wide variety of media. The young sculptor joined the École des Beaux-Arts in Reims at the age of just 15. He later moved to the renowned art college of La Casa Velázquez in Madrid.

While his early work was strongly characterised by modelling, Corda’s sculptural aesthetic developed with increasing maturity in the direction of smooth surface structures and full depictions of the body. First and foremost, he explored the body in its extreme form and borrowed from the acrobatic environment. He finally reached the high point of his examination of the expressive power of the body in the multiple illustrations of the Snake Man.

The sculpture offered here at auction "Contorsionniste IX" belongs to this series. In almost life-like dimensions, the acrobatic pose extends into the vertical. The reflective material of the white bronze also emphasises the drama of the extreme posture. Through the combination of muscular tension with gymnastic grace, Mauro Corda draws the viewer into the spell of his sculptural creation.

For this reason, he enjoys great recognition internationally, since his work is represented in exhibitions from Paris, to Beirut, to Singapore and Dubai. Not least this fact also draws a picture of universal reach of his artistic expression.

In the museum world also, the sculptures of Mauro Corda have often been presented, for example the Museo Eduardo Sivori (Buenos Aires, 2015), Maison Victor Hugo in La Havanna (Cuba, 2014), Museo Frederic Marès in Barcelona (Spain, 2005) as well as Fukushima Prefectural Museum of Art (Japan, 2001).
Mauro Corda was awarded the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres in 2010 for his artistic work.