Jean Cocteau - Les Cyclades (1926)

Les Cyclades (1926)

Artist: Jean Cocteau
Title: Les Cyclades
Original Work: 1926
Medium: Bronze on marble base
Dimensions: 23.2 × 12.8 × 5.5 cm (9 1/8 × 5 × 2 1/8 in)
Edition: 500 — incised signature, date and number on the pedestal
Publisher: Artcurial, Paris
Certificate: Certificate of Authenticity issued by Artcurial
Type: Limited edition bronze sculpture — authorised posthumous cas

Description:

Les Cyclades (1926/cast later) is a bronze sculpture published by Artcurial, Paris — one of France's most prestigious auction houses and art publishers — from an original work conceived by Jean Cocteau in 1926. The title references the Cyclades archipelago in the Aegean Sea, whose ancient marble sculptures — with their radical geometric simplification of the human form — were a touchstone of early twentieth-century modernism, influencing Picasso, Brancusi, Modigliani, and the entire generation of artists who looked to archaic Greek art as a liberation from academic naturalism.

Cocteau's engagement with classical antiquity was never archaeological but always personal and transforming — the myths, the gods, and the islands of Greece passed through the filter of his own exuberant, gender-fluid, erotically charged imagination to emerge as something entirely his own. A poet, novelist, filmmaker, playwright, and visual artist of extraordinary range, Cocteau created works in every medium he touched that bore the unmistakable stamp of his sensibility: linear, fluid, simultaneously ancient and irrepressibly modern. His drawn and sculptural figures — typically male, typically beautiful, typically in the act of transformation — occupy the same territory as the Cycladic idols: the body reduced to its essential gesture, form freed from the contingency of individual likeness.

Mounted on a marble base and incised with the artist's signature, date, and edition number on the pedestal, Les Cyclades is published in an edition of 500 by Artcurial — whose authority as both publisher and authenticating body for posthumous Cocteau editions carries significant institutional weight. Each impression is accompanied by a certificate of authenticity issued by Artcurial.

Shipping & Delivery:
✔ Worldwide shipping from France
✔ Professional packaging with insurance
✔ Tracking number included for secure delivery

➡️ Contact us for any question

FAQ 

Is this an original Jean Cocteau sculpture?
This is an authorised posthumous bronze cast, published by Artcurial, Paris, from Cocteau's original 1926 work. Each impression is incised with the artist's signature, date, and edition number on the pedestal, and accompanied by a certificate of authenticity issued by Artcurial.

What is Artcurial?
Artcurial is one of France's most prestigious auction houses and art publishers, based in Paris. As publisher of this edition, Artcurial serves as both the producing authority and the authenticating body for each impression.

What is the edition size?
500 impressions — each incised with signature, date, and number on the pedestal.

What are the Cyclades?
The Cyclades archipelago in the Aegean Sea is famous for its ancient marble sculptures — among the most radically simplified and geometrically pure figurative works in the history of art, widely influential on twentieth-century modernism.

Is a certificate of authenticity included?
Yes — issued by Artcurial, Paris.

What materials are used?
Bronze figure on a marble base — the combination of warm metal and cool stone characteristic of the finest French sculptural editions.

Do you ship internationally?
Yes — worldwide, with specialist packaging for bronze and marble sculptures, full insurance, and shipment tracking.

You might also love Kaws— explore the collection !