Female Saint of Starnberg
by GÜNTHER, Franz Ignaz, Linden wood, height 21 cm
In France and Italy small clay models were fashioned as guides for producing large-scale works in marble and bronze. Clay and wax were also served in northern Europe as modeling materials, but sculptors there often turned to wood to essay ideas for life-size sculpture. The German predilection for wood as a sculptural material promoted its use in a range of sizes.
The present wooden figure is a model for the so-called Female Saint of Starnberg, a key work from early in G�nther’s career, produced about 1755 (Heimatmuseum, Starnberg).