Limited Masterworks Peacock Group

Individual portrait, symbolic representation or expression of character: Meissen animal sculpture encompasses the full spectrum of artistic subjects and forms of expression that have been preserved and refined within the manufactory for more than 300 years. Established by the great Johann Joachim Kaendler to furnish the palaces of Augustus the Strong with works of art, animal figures became a favourite theme for generations of artists who shaped the distinctive style of the manufactory.

Among them was the Berlin sculptor Max Esser, who ushered in a new flourishing of Meissen animal sculpture during the 1920s. Following his apprenticeship, academic training and mentorship under the renowned animal sculptor August Gaul (1869-1921), Esser joined the manufactory in 1919, assumed leadership of the master studio in 1923 and was appointed professor in 1924. His passion lay in subtly stylised depictions of animals. With remarkable skill, he endowed his porcelain creations with a distinctive sense of movement and vitality. His figures, including the "Otter" and "Reinecke Fox", are still regarded as masterpieces of Art Deco porcelain.

Goethe's famous tale of Reinecke Fox inspired Esser to create a table centrepiece of a scale and complexity comparable to Kaendler's celebrated eighteenth-century works. The "Peacock Group", released as a Limited Art Edition of 25 pieces in 2020, was originally modelled around 1925 as part of this ensemble.

The figure is produced from 22 individual components. To preserve its upright posture during firing, a variety of supporting structures are required throughout production. From the initial modelling of the form to the final firing, the creation of this work demands the highest levels of artistic mastery and technical precision.