Jean Lambert-Rucki (1888 Krakow - 1967 Paris), Saint John the Baptist

Bronze, 35 cm, signed

Jean Lambert-Rucki (1888-1967) worked in sculpture, painting and applied art design. After graduating from Jozef Mehoffer's studio at the Academy of Fine Arts in Krakow, like his friend Moses Kisling, Rucki went to Paris in 1911. In the early years of his stay in the French capital, he studied at the Colarossi Academy and worked as a retoucher at a photographic establishment. Ten years later, thanks to the recommendation of Fernand Léger, he began working with the Cubist marchers Léonc Rosenberg. In 1923, he presented his Cubist realizations in a solo exhibition at the Galerie L'Effort Moderne. His sculptures combined modern form with traditional mosaic inlay. One of Lambert-Rucki's inspirations was city life. In the spirit of Légerian "tubism," the artist created groups of mysterious figures - nocturnal Montparnasse regulars wearing cylinders or bowler hats on their heads.