Ferdinando Vichi (Florence 1875–1945)

Ferdinando Vichi was a prolific and respected sculptor in Florence in the last part of the 19th and the first half of the 20th century. An alabaster workshop was associated with his name in the late 19th century, and he was connected with artists such as Cesare Lapini and Guglielmo Pugi, established sculptors of the Galleria Bazzanti workshops. Although Vichi also worked on subjects after the Antique and Renaissance-inspired models, it was Romantic sculpture he truly excelled at. As his reputation grew, he received not only local commissions, such as a memorial for the fallen of World War I in his native Florence, but also for a more international clientele, who were drawn in by his Romantic approach to his sculptures.

The present model of Selene, the ancient Greek goddess and personification of the Moon, exemplifies Vichi’s imaginative treatment of the female form, a theme to which he returned repeatedly, exploring it through varied poses and moods while maintaining a consistent emphasis on grace, sentiment, and idealized beauty.