28 - GIUSTO VITTI (Italy, late 19th century).

GIUSTO VITTI (Italy, late 19th century). "Male Bust." Marble. Signed. Measurements: 54 x 38 x 23 cm. Giusto Viti (often misspelled as Vitti) was a prominent Italian sculptor active from the late 19th century to the early 20th century. He is best known for his virtuosity in creating busts and sculptures in alabaster and marble, materials typical of the prolific commercial and academic sculptural tradition of fin-de-siècle Italy. Influenced by Bernini’s Italian Baroque style, Giusto Vitti presents us with a passionate work captured at the climax of the drama. Vitti renders the grace and expression of his figures with great virtuosity, naturalness, and a sense of materiality. His pieces straddle the line between late-19th-century academicism and the precursor to Art Deco. They are characterized by a delicate rendering of drapery, expressive or smiling faces, and engraved geometric pedestals.