This sculpture is a small-scale replica of the central figures of Milles's Europa and the Bull fountain in Halmstad, Sweden; erected in 1926, it was the first great fountain Milles designed. Stylistically, the Detroit bronze belongs to Milles's mature period, when he was no longer under the influence of French sculptor Auguste Rodin. The figures are characterized by smooth, simplified, and clearly defined forms. The monumental quality achieved by this approach is countered by the bull's upward thrusting pose and Europa's fluttering drapery, which energizes the grouping. Milles invites us to escape into the world of art and poetry with a modern reworking of the story from Greek mythology of Europa's adventurous ride. A rearranged version of the Europa and the Bull fountain also exists at the Cranbrook Academy of Art, in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan.
Artist Carl Milles, Swedish, 1875-1955
Title
  • Europa and the Bull
Date c. 1926
Medium bronze
Dimensions Overall: 31 1/2 inches (80 cm)
Credit Line City of Detroit Purchase
Accession Number 29.357.A
Department European Modern Art to 1950
Not On View
Flint Institute of Arts, MICHIGAN ART YESTERDAY AND TODAY, April 11-May 5, 1963, no 15.

"FAMILY ART GAME", DIA Advertising Supplement, DETROIT NEWS, April 29, 1984, p 22 (ill).

Laumeier Sculpture Park and Gallery, St. Louis, MO, ARTIST IN BRONZE, WATER, AND SPACE, May 12- Sept 8, 1985, checklist no 27.

THE INFLUENCE OF PARIS: EUROPEAN AND AMERICAN SCULPTURE 1830-1930, Detroit: Detroit Institute of Arts, 1981, cat no 25, p 32, (ill).