Discus Thrower at The Fine Arts Museum of Brussels, Belgium

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This Sculpture Captures The Discus Thrower in Motion, Completely Naked. Frozen in Time, the Moment is Perfectly Replicated: Muscles Tense, Proportion and Symmetry of His Body on Full Display. Mathieu Kessels, Known to Many as Matthias or Matthijs, was Born in Maastricht to a Carpenter Father. One Brother Became an Architect in Hamburg, Another a Famous Clockmaker, Also in Hamburg. Mathieu First Trained with a Goldsmith in Venlo but Soon Abandoned His Apprenticeship to Attend the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris. In 1806, He Made His Way to Saint Petersburg via Hamburg, Where He Spent Eight Years Learning Wax Modeling and Sculpture Techniques from Joseph Camberlain. In 1815, Mathieu Returned Briefly to Venlo and Maastricht Before Spending Several Months at Girodet's Studio in Paris. His Work Was Exhibited at the 1819 Salon. Determined to Go to Rome, He Was Accepted as an Apprentice of Bertel Thorvaldsen, Probably in 1818. In a Competition for Young Artists, Organized by Antonio Canova, Mathieu Won the Highest Award with His Terracotta Saint Sebastian Pierced by Arrows, a Piece of Frank and Beautiful Workmanship. In Rome, He Became a Member, Later Professor of the Academy of St. Luke and of the Institute of the Netherlands. He Was Also a Member of the Academies in Amsterdam (from 1824 Onwards) and Antwerp. In Rome, Mathieu Taught Several Students, Including Louis Jehotte and Eugene Simonis, Who Exerted an Influence Through Their Teaching at the Académie Royale des Beaux-Arts in Brussels. Another Student Was Johannes Antonius van der Ven, Who Sculpted His Funeral Stone. Mattieu Kessels Died in Rome While Working on Saint Michael Overcoming the Hydra of Anarchy for the Church of Saint Gudula, Now Brussels Cathedral. On Mathieu's Death, His Studio Was Acquired by the Belgian Government and Transferred to the Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium in Brussels. The Museum Now Owns Over 70 Works by Mathieu Kessels, Including the Marble Busts of Marcus Aurelius, Cicero, Isis, and Gaius or Lucius Caesar (all 1817-19), The Genius of Art (1820–23), Bacchus (1823–24), Woman Weeping over an Urn (1825) and Venus (1826–29). In the Late 1820s, Mathieu Renounced Some of the Pure Classicism of Thorvaldsen in Favor of the More Seductive Style of Canova, Mixed with the Pathos of Italian Baroque. This is the Case with His Marble Monument to the Countess of Celles (Rome, Chiesa di San Giuliano dei Fiamminghi, 1828). In Another Large Sculpture, Flood Scene (Plaster, c. 1833), the Romantic Emphasis of This Work Differentiates It from Some of the Other Works of His Late Period, Which Are Imbued with Religious Sentimentality. (Credit: Wikipedia) This Object is Part of "Scan The World". Scan the World is a Non-Profit Initiative Introduced by MyMiniFactory, Through Which We are Creating a Digital Archive of Fully 3D Printable Sculptures, Artworks and Landmarks from Across the Globe for the Public to Access for Free. Scan the World is an Open Source, Community Effort, If You Have Interesting Items Around You and Would Like to Contribute, Email stw@myminifactory.com to Find Out How You Can Help. Scanned: Photogrammetry (Processed Using Agisoft PhotoScan)