Pair of Modernist Andirons in Cast Iron with Stylised Figure Supports, by Ray

This pair of modernist andirons in cast iron, attributed to the famous French wrought iron artist Raymond Subes (1891–1970), is a remarkable example of the master's ability to distill the human form into its most elemental geometric silhouette. Each post is cut from a single plate of cast iron, the profile articulated in a sequence of bold abstract shapes: a closed oval loop at the top—evocative of a head or an ankh—narrows into a slender neck before widening into two symmetrical lateral projections, tightening again at the waist before blossoming into a diamond-shaped lower body, ending on two small feet with scrolls. The result is a silhouette of striking graphic power, oscillating between the hieroglyphic and the figurative. The square-section wrought iron log holder extends horizontally to keep the logs at the right height above the grate, its sober rectilinear geometry providing a thoughtful counterpoint to the organic complexity of the cast iron post. The combination of cast iron and wrought iron—two distinct techniques with different material qualities—testifies to Subes' mastery of the entire traditional repertoire of ironwork. Raymond Subes was among the first metal decorative artists in 20th-century France. Trained at the École Boulle and then a protégé of Émile Robert, he became the artistic director of the Borderel & Robert workshop, for which he created some of the most famous ironwork commissions of the Art Deco period. His production ranged from monumental architectural grilles to intimate domestic objects, always demonstrating a confident assurance in abstraction within the tradition of ironwork. Dated around 1940, these andirons represent Subes at the height of his modernist period, when his work achieved a formal purity that anticipated the sculptural abstraction of the decades following the war.