Rating and value of sculptures, drawings and paintings by Paul Troubetzkoy

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Rating and value of the artist

An important Russian artist, Paul Troubetzkoy has a high rating on the auction market. Appreciated, Troubetzkoy's works sell for between €70 and €142,900 on the art market, a sizeable delta but one that speaks volumes about the value that can be attributed to the artist's works.

As evidenced by his bronze sculpture Madame Goujon, sold for €142,900 in 2012 at Sotheby's, while it was estimated at between €62,130 and €86,980. 

Order of value from the most basic to the most prestigious

Artist's style and technique

Paul Troubetzkoy is a modern Russian sculptor who produced mostly bronze sculptures. Nicknamed the " Rodin Russian ", he produces many portraits

He works mainly with bronze, but also with plaster and terracotta for sketches and studio casting. Casting is mostly done with lost wax, which preserves the spontaneity of the modeling.

Bases are sometimes integrated into compositions, treated as a plastic extension of the sculpture. Modeling is direct, rapid and gestural, emphasizing the impression of energy and finished detail. The surface is marked by a vibrant texture (striations, finger marks, tool marks left visible).

The volumes are unpolished, favoring a dynamic, luminous rendering through fragmentation of the surface. His aesthetic is close to sculptural impressionism, where the material registers gesture and light. Troubetzkoy mainly creates figures and portraits, often on a reduced or medium scale.

In his practice, he strives for psychological resemblance rather than mimetic realism, capturing character, attitude and movement. Human or animal figures captured in natural, sometimes fleeting attitudes, which convey the vivacity of the moment.

He very often depicts worldly figures, such as aristocrats, artists, writers, who are captured with an elegance that is not academic.

The postures of his sculptures are often offset, asymmetrical, which helps to introduce an internal dynamic. He sometimes seeks subtle imbalances and misalignments that give an impression of movement.

The volume is worked in successive masses, accentuating tactile perception and optical vibration. The patinas are varied, with deep brown, antique green and satin black, sometimes enhanced by warmer shades. The patina is applied to accentuate the contrast between shadowy areas and light-catching reliefs.

Heir to Impressionism, he attempted to transpose this movement into sculpture (often compared to Medardo Rosso). Breaking with the Russian and European academicism of his time, through a search for spontaneity and immediacy.

Paul Troubetzkoy is internationally recognized, notably in France, Italy and the United States, for his modern approach to portraiture.  

The life of Paul Troubetzkoy

Paul Troubetzkoy (1866 - 1938) was a Russian artist born in 1866 in Intra, Italy. He was the son of Pierre Troubetzkoy, a Russian diplomat, and Adèle Sellar, an American singer. He was mainly self-taught, although he was encouraged by his family's artistic milieu through his contacts with local artists.

He was initially interested in painting, before turning to sculpture from the 1880s onwards. He held his first exhibitions in Milan in the 1980s, and was soon noticed for his impressionist style of sculpture, which contrasted with the prevailing academicism.

It was during this period that he made the acquaintance of Medaro Rosso, an Italian sculptor and pioneer of plastic impressionism, whose influence was to prove decisive. Between 1897 and 1906, he was a professor at the Imperial Academy of Fine Arts in Moscow, where he painted numerous portraits of personalities such as Tolstoy, Rodin, a number of aristocrats, writers and musicians).

In 1906, he organized a solo exhibition in Paris at the Salon d'Automne, where he was enthusiastically received. Troubetzkoy then moved to Paris, where he rubbed shoulders with Rodin and became a recognized figure on the European art scene. He also traveled and exhibited regularly in the United States, New York and Chicago, where he acquired a prestigious clientele.

Paul Troubetzkoy was also a convinced vegetarian, criticizing industrial society and animal exploitation. His friendship with Leo Tolstoy strengthened his ethical and spiritual commitment, and he produced several portraits of the novelist, testifying to his respect and the psychological depth of the character.

He received numerous official and private commissions, including sculptural portraits of political, aristocratic and cultural figures. His works were exhibited in major institutions, contributing to his international reputation.

The artist won numerous awards, including a gold medal at the 1900 Paris Universal Exhibition. He continued to work between Italy, France and the USA during the 1920s-30s, and died in Suna, near Verbania in Italy at the age of 72.

The artist is today considered one of the great exponents of sculptural impressionism. His portraits of Tolstoy, Rodin and European and American high society have become emblematic of his style.

His works are now housed in major museums, including the Musée d'Orsay (Paris), MoMA (New York) and Milan's Galerie d'Art Moderne. Today, he is listed on the art market alongside other Russian sculptors such as Neizvetsny, Aronson or Lavroff.

Focus on Portrait of Leo Tolstoy, Paul Troubetzkoy

This portrait, painted in 1898 for the first version, is kept at the Musée d'Orsay, at the Tretiakov Gallery in Moscow and in private collections for later versions.

It depicts the Russian novelist standing or sitting, depending on the version, dressed in a simple peasant blouse. His silhouette is deliberately massive yet supple, with a slightly slumped posture, conveying the writer's simplicity and humility.

The volumes are not detailed : face, clothes and hands are sketched more than described, through a vibrant modulation of the material. The surface is unpolished, and retains the fingerprint of the tool, creating luminous asperities.

The sculpture gives an effect of instant impression, the artist privileging the capture of character rather than exact resemblance to the model. The material thus becomes a visual pulsation, animated by striations and reliefs that catch the light.

Troubetskoy's portrait translates Tolstoy's austerity and moral strength, with the absence of ornamentation and a simple posture. The impressionistic treatment makes the portrait almost spiritual, and expresses an interiority beyond the physical.

The bronze, raw in appearance, reinforces the image of a man rooted in the earth, close to the people and to nature. The viewer perceives an overall movement rather than detailed figuration. The sculpture functions as a living presence rather than a static object.

The asperities of the surface create a play of light and shadow that constantly animates the figure. As a result, this work embodies Troubetskoy's genius for capturing the soul of a character through rapid, vibrant facture.

The portrait of Tolstoy has thus become one of the icons of the writer's modern imagery, often reproduced and exhibited. It confirms Troubetzkoy's role as a mediator between plastic impressionism and the tradition of Russian psychological portraiture.

Paul Troubetzkoy's imprint on his time

Paul Troubetzkoy is a sculptor who left his mark on 19th-century art in Russia. His works are part of prestigious collections and are sought after by many buyers, who play the greatest role in preserving his works although some are exhibited in museums.

His signature

Not all of Paul Troubetzkoy's works are signed.

Although there are variations, here is a first example of his signature:

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