CHIPARUS, DEMETER 1886-1947 A Slight Accident base engraved: "Chiparus"; Bronze numbered: 2. Cold-painted parcel-gilt bronze; carved and tinted ivory, 39.5 by 19.5 by 10.5 cm. Provenance: Private collection. Literature: Brian Catley, Art Deco and other Figures, Antique Collectors' Club, Woodbridge, Suffolk, 1978, p. 72 illustrated. A. Shayo. Chiparus: Master of Art Deco. Abbeville Press Inc., US., 1993, p. 73. Art Deco Sculpture: from Root to Flourishing, vol 1, Russian House Art Deco, 2008. Chiparus was a tireless observer of female charm and depicted his heroines in contemporary fashions as well as more historical dress. The sculpture presented here for auction is of a townswoman from the end of the 19th century wearing a hat and typically long dress. It is well known that, right up to the beginning of the twentieth century, for woman to bare the naked leg above the ankle was the height of daring. Chiparus's heroine makes it appear that the strong wind is the reason for her pose and exposure, leaving the viewer to gaze with a gentle smile at the wantonness of the mischievous young flirt.